


Hold Onto Me

by Moxley_Mox018



Category: Professional Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Alcohol, Anxiety, Boys In Love, Bullying, Consensual Sex, Depression, Emo seth, Falling In Love, Flashbacks, Fluff, Healing, High School AU, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Protective Dean, Self Harm, Sexual Content, Trauma, Trust Issues, hospital visits, mentions of child abuse, non consensual sex, self exploration, trigger warning
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2019-04-30
Packaged: 2019-05-08 09:05:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Underage
Chapters: 14
Words: 38,979
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14690868
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moxley_Mox018/pseuds/Moxley_Mox018
Summary: A story about two boys who’s tragedies brought them together, teaching them both how to love and trust again on their journey through their lives.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So hey! I think there is also a lack of Ambrollins high school out there as well, so I’ve decided to delve into one myself. In this story, there will be some triggering things, so if you are uncomfortable by that, please do not read. But other than that, I hope you guys enjoy yet another Ambrollins story :)

Dean Ambrose made his way through the halls on his first day of junior year. He could tell you exactly just how much he hated this school and all the other assholes in it. In fact, just last year he had gotten suspended for telling the principal, Mr. McMahon just how much of a shithole he thought this school was.

His eyes skimmed the kids at their lockers. He watched as some of them fumbled with their locks. “Must be freshmen,” he thought to himself as he made it to his own locker, opening it on the first try.

He dropped his singular binder and notebook inside before slamming the door shut. He wasn’t the kind to carry around many books. He didn’t think there was a need for them, or for school in general. It did save him from his hellacious home life though. 

His mom had gotten a new man last week, and needless to say, he wasn’t any better than any other guy she brought home. Dean could tell by the smell of stale alcohol that radiated off of the new one, who’s name Dean didn’t bother to remember. He regarded him as asshole number 11, not to his face though. He didn’t dare talk down to any one of the guys his mom brought home after number 4. Now he was a nightmare. Anytime Dean stepped out of line, or even opened his mouth, he’d beat the boy until he could hardly walk. Dean couldn’t tell you how many days of school he missed in order to let his bruises heal. If the teachers had seen, he’d be in even more trouble with number 4 than he could handle.

He let out a sigh, dismissing the thoughts from his mind as he pushed through the crowd of people surrounding the lockers. When would people learn to get the fuck out of the way? Did no one know how to walk anymore? He grunted as he gave a particularly hard push, almost instantly regretting it when the small body went flying face first into a locker door.

“Aw fuck kid, I.. I’m sorry,” Dean stopped dead in his tracks, staring down at the kid nervously.

“It’s okay,” came the faint reply.

“You sure? Let me help you..” Dean insisted as he held his hand out. The smaller boy slowly looked up at him, and damn, his eyes put a baby deer’s to shame. 

The baby brown eyes gazed into his electric blue ones as he slowly took Dean’s hand. Dean gently helped him up instead of focusing on how soft the kid’s hand felt against his own calloused one, or how perfectly it fit into his own, or even how the tight black jeans he was wearing hugged his ass so perfectly..

“Knock it off Dean,” he mentally scolded himself. “You don’t like guys.”

He knew he was lying to himself, he truly was. For as long as Dean could remember, he never was particularly interested in females. Sure, he appreciated them and thought them to be beautiful, but they didn’t seem to help him get it up. He found this out the hard way back in freshman year when he went to hook up with one of the hottest girls in his grade, Nikki Bella. Seeing her naked had definitely peaked his interest, but not enough for him to even get a little hard. The whole thing was a major disaster that Nikki never let him live down. She had even went as far as to tell all her girlfriends, who had giggled for weeks anytime they seen him.

After some time, everyone had finally started to leave him alone, which he thanked god for. In the meantime, after the incident, he had decided to experiment with himself a bit. So he saved up his money and had an older friend of his buy him a magazine. The first night he took it home, he slipped it out from under his pillow after he had excused himself to bed for the night. He had found that his body was much more reactive to the pictures of the males. 

Ever since then, he knew deep down that he was gay. He never acted on it though, considering half of his class already teased him. It was better off this way. His business was his business after all.

His eyes focused in on the younger boy’s face once again. He watched as he pushed his thick, black rimmed glasses back up his nose, before brushing the dust off his long black sleeves of his shirt. He gently brushed some curls out of his face before he looked back to Dean, catching him staring not so secretly. 

“I’m so sorry again.. uh.. what’s your name?” Dean asked, a blush creeping up into his cheeks.

“It’s Seth.. Seth Rollins,” the boy, Seth, had explained.

“I’m sorry Seth, I should be a bit more careful of my actions,” Dean said, a wave of sincerity washing over him. “I’m Dean by the way.”

“Its okay, no harm done.. Dean,”Seth said quietly as he hugged his books closer to his chest. Dean couldn’t help but crack a small smile at the boy. He was so shy, and Dean couldn’t help but find it adorable. 

“I uh.. I should get going,” a small voice said, breaking Dean from his thoughts. “I don’t want to be late on my first day..”

“Oh yeah, sorry again Seth. Maybe I’ll see you around?” Dean asked, feeling hopeful.

“Um.. yeah, sure,” he had said a bit awkwardly, as if he wanted to run far away from Dean to hide.

“Awesome,” Dean smiled softly at the brunette, trying to ease him of his discomfort a bit. 

He watched as Seth walked away, slipping his earbuds in his ears. He kept his head down as he disappeared down the hall. Dean couldn’t help but let his eyes wander down a bit, and he wasn’t disappointed. The kid had a very perky ass..

“Jesus Christ Ambrose, can’t you keep your eyes to yourself?” A shrill laugh brought Dean back to his senses. His eyes locked with Nikki’s as a small snarl was heard.

“We get that you’re a dog Dean, no need to growl at us,” she laughed obnoxiously as her twin sister, Brie, and their boyfriends, Nick and Bryan, joined in.

“Don’t act like we didn’t just see you eyeing up the new kids ass Dean. I bet if he didn’t walk away, you would’ve jumped his leg just like the dog you are,” Nick spit in his direction, and oh how Dean wanted to rip the stupid bleach blonde bun off the top of his head.

“That’s even if he can get his one inch wonder up,” Brie laughed, making everyone else in their little group erupt with laughter. Nikki was the next to open her mouth after their laughing died down a little.

“What makes you think someone like him would want someone like you? You’re nothing but trash just like your whore of a mother,” Nikki said coldly.

“Keep it together Dean, just keep it together,” he argued with himself inside his mind. Getting into a fight on the first day of school was not something he needed to be doing, especially since it was a girl. It wasn’t worth the trouble. He was better than them.

He bit his tongue as he turned and slowly walked away, ignoring the taunts and names thrown at him. 

Boy was this going to be a long year.

 

********************************************

 

Seth didn’t think his day could get any worse, but just like always, it felt like the universe was against him. Just as he was standing there, waiting for a few people to move so he could get to his locker, he felt a shove from behind. Being as scrawny as he was, Seth went flying face first into his locker before he hit the ground. It was only his first day at a new school and he was already being pushed around.

All he had to say was at least the kid apologized. For someone who had just laid him out, he was surprisingly nice, which scared Seth a bit. Anytime someone was nice to him, he always found a way to fuck things up.

The boy, who Seth learned was named Dean, had apologized profusely and even helped Seth get back to his feet. He couldn’t help but gaze into the electric blue eyes that Dean possessed. They were nothing short of beautiful. Dean in general was a very handsome guy. Messy auburn curls covered his head, hanging down into his eyes a bit. He had full, and very kissable lips, along with unmistakable dimples. A plain black shirt covered his chest, along with a pair of baggy jeans and a black belt to hold them up. If Seth wasn’t so awkward and had just a little bit of confidence, he may have actually made a better effort to talk to him. Instead, he politely dismissed him and ran for the hills.

It was nothing he could help. His social anxiety came along with his other personal problems. The problems that were caused by one of the biggest jocks in his old school. If he would’ve just left Seth be, he wouldn’t be here right now. It was the main reason why he and his family left the state of Iowa to move all the way to Cincinnati. Being the new kid really didn’t help with any of this at all. In fact, Seth thought it made things worse on top of everything else.

By the time he sat down in first period history class, his heart was hammering in his chest. He slowly tried to calm his breathing, panicking a bit when it just wouldn’t slow. He half contemplated calling his mom to have her come pick him up. She had told him before he left that if he needed anything at all, or felt like he needed to come home, she’d be right there to get him. He knew if he did though, his dad would only tell him to man up instead of acting like a child.

He hated that they made him come here. He thought that cyber was a better off choice for him since he dealt with so many problems at his last school, but his therapist thought differently. She thought it would be better for Seth to attend public school again, to get to be around other kids. For Seth though, it only made his anxiety spike. All he wanted was to be wrapped up under his blankets, where nothing and no one could hurt him. 

The whole day didn’t go by any faster. I only dragged, and dragged. Seth didn’t see Dean again the rest of the day, but that was partly because he was avoiding pretty much everyone. 

After he got off the bus, he bolted down the street to his house. The black Honda Civic that his mom drove wasn’t in its spot, which told Seth that maybe she went to the grocery store. That was fine, Seth wanted some time alone anyway. 

He walked inside and kicked his shoes off, dropping his bag by the door before he ran up to his room. One quick look in his brother’s room had also alerted him that he too, wasn’t home. Even better.

Seth slipped inside his room and locked the door behind him. All he needed was five minutes.. He dug through a box that he had yet to unpack, searching for his little box. The little box that held his one true friend. 

His eyes lit up as the small velvet box came into view. He pulled it out, feeling the material soft against his skin. He smiled a little to himself as he popped it open, revealing his blade. 

Seth knew it was risky to do this type of thing for many reasons. One because his mom could walk in any moment and decide to send him straight back to the looney bin. Two because something could go wrong. Seth didn’t really care though. 

He stood up and popped the button on his jeans, squirming out of them. He rolled his briefs up a bit, revealing the other cuts that he made just two days ago. His hands didn’t tremble as he added two new, and deep cuts to the bronze skin. A small sigh slipped out of his lips as he watched the blood bubble up and begin to run down his leg.

He made sure to carefully clean them up before pulling on a pair of sweatpants. The sting he felt didn’t sting as much as the pain he felt when Jason forced himself inside of Seth on that fateful night. Seth didn’t think ANYTHING could hurt as much as that did. Not even colliding with those lockers, and Dean Ambrose himself, could even compare.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean is curious when he doesn’t see Seth around in the hallways. Seth has a heart to heart with his older brother.

Three days. It’s been three days since Dean shoved Seth, and it’s been three days that Dean’s wished to take it back. It doesn’t make anything better knowing that Seth hasn’t been to school since Monday. It’s the very first week of school and the kid has already missed three days straight. Dean knew it wasn’t his business to get into, considering Seth made it clear he didn’t want anything to do with him the other day, but it didn’t stop his mind from wandering.

Friday’s were supposed to be the best day of the week. This one however, wasn’t looking to bright for Dean. Seth still hadn’t returned to school. He had waited across the hall from the boy’s locker, but he never showed. He wanted to know what was going on. 

“What’s going through that head of yours?” a husky voice rang out, making Dean’s head snap in the direction.

“Nothing Rome.. just thinking,” Dean said, flipping some of his curls out of his eyes.

Roman considered him for a moment as he took a seat beside him at the lunch table. 

“How’re things at home Dean,” he said softly, watching as his friend tensed up.

“They uh.. they’re fine,” Dean lied, not really wanting to dwell on it.

“Dean, look at me buddy.. please?” Roman asked Dean softly, and slowly, Dean turned his head. Blue eyes met grey ones, and Roman could see the hurt plain as day in his best friends eyes.

“What happened Dean?”

There he went with those three words. Those three fucking words that Dean hated more than anything. Tears threatened to fall as he looked back down at the table as he rolled up his sleeves, revealing the dark blue bruises. He heard the gasp leave Roman’s lips, yet he refused to look back up into the grey eyes.

“He grabbed me. Said I mouthed back at him,” the auburn haired boy said quietly.

“Did you ice those at all?” 

A small head shake was his only response. 

Roman looked back down at his lunch. He let out a small huff before standing up, gently pulling Dean up with him. 

“Follow me..”

And Dean did. He followed him out of the cafeteria, leaving their lunch behind. He followed the dark haired boy down the back hall to the gym.

“Coach has ice in here.. those are bad bud. You need to tell someone,” Roman busied himself making an ice pack for his younger friend.

“Yeah? And how do you suggest I do that Roman,” Dean said, a hint of bitterness in his voice. “No one believe the victim. Tried to tell the office about nikki and her bitches but what did they do? Zip. They didn’t do shit and now it’s all just bad Roman. And to make it worse, I shoved this kid the other day, and he hasn’t been back to school since.” Damn it felt good to get it all off his chest.

“The stuff about Nikki doesn’t surprise me much. She never knows when to just quit. But what’s this about you pushing a kid?” Roman questioned him as he iced his wrists.

Dean let out a soft sigh as he ran a hand through his shaggy hair. “On Monday I was walking through the hall and there was a shit ton of people in my way. Well I shoved a kid and he went flying Rome.. I felt so bad.”

“Did you get his name?”

“Yeah.. it was Seth.. Seth Rollins,” Dean replies as he put the ice on his other wrist.

“Oh I know his brother Brandon. He tried out for the team this year.” Roman added, noticing how Dean was still zoned out. “Uce?”

“I just feel bad Roman.. what if I’m the reason he stayed home? What if he’s afraid to be here because of me?” Dean said in a small voice.

A small frown made its way onto Roman’s lips. Leave it to Dean to get stuck in his head over something like this.

“Dean, I’m sure he’s just sick or something,” he spoke slowly.

“No one is sick for fours days Roman.. he should be back by now..”

“Well let me ask you this Dean.. why do you care?”

That stopped Dean from talking. Why did he care? He didn’t know Seth personally, but maybe he wanted to. Maybe he wanted to be the first friend Seth makes at this school. How could he do that if Seth doesn’t show up for school though?

“I uh.. I.. h-he looked new. I thought he could use a friend,” Dean settled on that answer. Truth was he wasn’t really sure why he was so worried about Seth. I mean, he barely knew the kid except for what he looked like.

He watched Roman nod. “Just like you did?”

Dean nodded slowly, thinking back to when he met Roman. Way back when, whenever Dean moves here freshman year, he knew what it was like to be alone. Roman was the friend that Dean needed. Despite being a grade above him, and being on the football team, he was never afraid to be seen around Dean. He was just that type of friend that anyone would kill to have. 

“Look, if it’ll make you feel better, I’ll talk to Brandon..”

“No! Just leave it alone Roman. Please?” He sighed as he got up. “Just drop it, okay?”

He whipped the ice bag across the room as he left. The last thing he heard was the smash it made off a locker as he shoved the door open, leaving Roman sitting by himself on the bench, wondering what the hell happened.

 

***^****************************************

 

Seth winced a little, burying himself deeper under his covers. His parents have been fighting non stop ever since his dad had came home from work to find Seth still tucked in bed.

“Why the hell aren’t you at school,” he had accused.

“M-mom said I could stay home,” his voice shook as he spoke quietly.

After that, the shit storm had started. His dad had went downstairs, screaming profanities and accusing his mother. It had been going on and off for three hours now, and so had Seth’s crying. He couldn’t help but blame himself for it all.

“You can’t keep him home from school every damn day just because he doesn’t wanna go,” he heard his dad yell.

“Have you forgotten about everything he went through David? He was in the hospital for almost a year because that boy ruined him. He took something from Seth that he will never, ever get back. It’s not his fault,” his mom yelled back as Seth sobbed into his pillow.

“He needs to get over himself! He’s 16 years old, almost a man. I know people that have been in the same situation and they don’t act like that,” his dad yelled, anger practically spilling from his voice.

He hated when his past was brought up. He was fighting so hard to get better and to move on with his life, for them but also for himself. It was just so hard, and he could only take so much. His mom had been right, a part of him had been taken unwillingly. A part of him that he’d never get that back. And thanks to that bastard, Seth was going to have to live with the feeling for the rest of his life. He had to live with the paranoia and anxiety of being around other males or just people in general. He had to live with the thought that he may never be a normal guy.

It hurt him to think that he may never be normal. Though most of his symptoms were under control, he still experienced nightmares, he still got the shakes, he still got nervous in certain settings, and he absolutely hated when anyone touched him. His mom and brother have been patient with him, coming in to lay with him when he’d wake up crying in the middle of the night. His dad however, was another story. 

He seemed to have cared at first, but after Seth had been in the hospital for the first month, he had changed. He no longer had the patience to help Seth with his recovery. All he did was yell and complain about how much they’d be in the hole because his freak of a son had to go and provoke the other boys. What he didn’t realize was just how bad it hurt Seth to hear those heart breaking words. Now not only was his marriage suffering, but so was the bond with both of his sons.

“Seth? Are you alright?” He heard the deep, but soft, voice of his older brother from outside of his blanket cocoon. 

“N-no,” he managed to croak out, his voice sounding weak.

“Here, scoot over,” he did as he was told, scooting over a little as he felt the bed dip. He slowly peeked his head out from under his blanket, meeting the matching chocolate brown eyes of his brother.

“Bad day I’m guessing?” Seth nodded in reply.

“I was gonna go this morning.. mom was gonna take me in late, but I got scared Brandon. I couldn’t face it,” he whispered, his voice shaking very little.

He watched as his brother thought, the only sounds heard being Seth’s sniffling and Brandon’s soft breathing. He let out a soft noise as he wrapped his arms around Seth’s middle, Seth nuzzling into his brother’s warm embrace. It never always used to be like this. 

After the incident occurred, Seth refused to let anyone near him. He’d scream and cry and bury himself under the blankets if anyone had even looked at him the wrong way. His mom had been the first to break that fear. She had slowly worked with him day by day until all at once, he’d want nothing more than to be in his mother’s arms. 

It had taken him longer to let Brandon get close though. Considering it had been a boy around Brandon’s age that had hurt him, he really didn’t want him near him all that much. After awhile though, he had gotten used to his brother’s gentle touch and soft words. 

“Some boy asked about you today..” Brandon said lightly as Seth tensed a little.

“W-what? Who?,” he started to shake a little.

“Hey hey, calm down,” a gentle hand worked its way through his messy hair.

“Who was it?” Seth asked again.

“A boy on my football team. His name is Roman. He’s pretty nice,” Brandon smiles softly as continued to pet his brother’s hair.

“He asked about me?”

“Well, more like his friend asked about you .”

“Who..”

“Well Roman didn’t specify, but I’m guessing it’s the shaggy haired boy he’s always hanging around,” Brandon said, and Seth immediately knew who he was talking about.

“Y-you mean Dean?” He asked softly.

“Well I don’t exactly know his name, but it seems like you know him. How’d that come about?,” his brother looked at him with a quizzical look on his face. Seth knew what he meant. 

“He bumped into me the other day. He started talking to me and of course I was courteous and talked back with him. I don’t know Brandon,” he let out a soft sigh.

“Well bud, I think it’s good you’re at least talking to the other kids. It would be good if you at least made a friend. Even if it’s just one, it’s a start.”

“But he’s a boy..”

“Seth, buddy, not all guys are like that. I know the thought of being around, or even trusting other guys is hard, but one day you’ll meet the boy you’re meant to be with. I’m not saying things will be rough, but if he cares enough about you, he’ll stay with you through thick and thin. I mean, take Alexa and I for example. She’s been stuck with my ass for the past two years. During that time you were in the hospital and it was so hard on me, but she never gave up on me. You just have to stay strong. Prove the doctor that she’s wrong,” Brandon spoke as he ran his hands through his brother’s soft curls. Seth took in each word carefully, listening to his brother. 

He finally settled on a question that he’d always wanted to ask. “Bran, what’s it like to be in love?”

He heard a soft chuckle, looking back up into his brother’s eyes. “It’s different for everyone, but Seth, it’s one of the greatest feelings in the world. It’s hard to explain, but you’ll know when you find the person, or in your case, the guy.”

Seth smiled a little at his brother’s words. Out of everyone in his whole family, Brandon had given him unconditional support ever since he had came out to him. His parents were a different story though. His mom had cried when he had first told her hat he was gay, but she came around right after that. She didn’t treat him or love him any different. His dad though, he didn’t like it. Seth had overheard him talking to his mom one night, saying that being gay was a disgrace. In his fathers eyes, it took away his masculinity. 

“Just promise me you’re gonna try? I’ll be right there for you if you need me. Try talking to this Dean. Make friends with him bud. I’m telling you that things will get a lot easier when you have a friend other than your brother,” Brandon teased lightly, earning a small smile from the younger male.

“I promise I’ll try,” Seth said softly. “For real this time.”

This time he vowed that he really was going to make an effort to make a friend, even if that friend happened to be Dean Ambrose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this chapter sucks, it was a bit of a filler. But I hope you guys are enjoying this one!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth finally heads back to school, and Dean is relieved to see him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a trigger warning for this chapter. Don’t like, don’t read. Thank you!

Seth panted as he ran, the impending doom sinking deep into him. His lungs burned, desperate for him to stop and breathe for a second. He wasn’t going to take any chances when HE was after him.

“You can’t run from me,” the faint voice called after him.

“Leave me alone,” Seth screamed loud enough to wake the dead.

It felt as if time had slowed down all of a sudden. Seth’s feet started to sink into the ground. He let out a terrified shriek and tried to move, but he couldn’t. He was stuck in place. 

His body started to shake with fear as he looked around. His eyes darted back and forth, searching for the face that he wished he could forget. Tears threatened to spill out of his chocolate colored eyes as he stood there and screamed in pure horror. 

“It’s great to see you again princess,” the gravely voice said. “Ready for round two?”

Seth’s head snapped in the direction of the voice. His wide, paranoid eyes focused on the one person he hated with all his being. The one person that caused him all this internal pain. Jason.

“Fuck you,” he started to scream as Jason came closer. “Leave me alone!”

“Seth! Seth, baby, wake up,” a different voice rang out, ripping him away from the dream.

His eyes flew open and landed on the scared face of his mother and brother. He panted heavily as he felt the tears well up in his eyes. His body shook violently as he let out a small whine, reaching for his mother.

“Mama,” he whimpered, tears spilling down his cheeks.

She slowly wrapped her arms around her son’s thin frame. He draped himself across her body, burying his face into her neck. A gentle hand rubbed at his sweat soaked back, trying to help calm the sobbing boy.

“Shh, I’m here baby, it’s okay,” she cooed in his ear, gazing up at Brandon. “Brandon, sweetie, can you get me his meds, a bottle of water, and a damp rag please?”

He nodded and disappeared down the hall.

“Brandon went to get you a drink sweetie, you’re gonna be okay. I’m right here,” she whispered as she pressed a kiss to her son’s temple.

She felt his thin body shake against her as she held him close. It had been the first nightmare he’s had in two months. Her baby had been doing so good. He went to therapy regularly and even started public school.. even if he did only go for one day.

Her heart ached for him. She hated seeing either of her boys in pain. Especially this constant state of mental anguish that Seth always seemed to be in, all thanks to the little bastard that did this too him. Her arms instinctively wrapped tighter around her boy. All she ever wanted was to keep him safe, and that night she had failed completely at it.

“Here mom..” she was shaken from her thoughts by Brandon, who had returned with the requested items.

“Thank you sweetie,” she said softly as she laid the damp rag across the back of Seth’s neck. A soft sigh came from the shaking boy, finding slight comfort in the coolness off the rag against his hot skin.

“Seth, baby, let’s take your medicine, okay?,” she said gently as the arms wrapped tighter around her. “Just real fast sweetie.. and then I can hold you as long as you’d like.”

After a few moments of consideration, Seth slowly gave in and eased himself away from his mother’s loving embrace.

“Good boy,” she smiled softly as she brushed his hair out of his face. 

Seth slowly took his pills from Brandon with a shaky hand. He popped them in his mouth and swallowed them before laying his head back on his moms shoulder.

“Mm, stay with me,” he whispered as he felt his eyes get heavy once again.

“Of course sweetie,” his mom replied as she slowly laid him back down before laying right beside him.

“Everything gonna be okay?” Brandon asked slowly.

Their mother nodded. “I got it all under control, but thank you sweetie.. Go ahead back to bed. You have school in the morning.” 

Brandon nodded and kissed their mother goodnight before leaving the room. Seth’s tired eyes followed him as he walked back down to his own room, shutting the door behind him. 

The gentle brush of fingers through his long black locks was enough to help calm him the rest of the way. His eyes slowly closed and before long, he was out once again.

********************************************

Seth woke up in the morning, strong but delicate arms wrapped gently around him waist. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes before slowly opening them. The chocolate brown eyes landed on the sleeping figure of his brother next to him in bed. 

“Mom must’ve got up to make breakfast,” he thought to himself as he carefully untangled himself from his brother’s arms.

He made his way down the hall to the bathroom, his bare feet making a light patting noise on the floor. He quickly did his business before he washed his hands and went downstairs. The smell of bacon greeted him as he walked into the kitchen. 

“Good morning baby,” his mom smiled as he nuzzled his nose into her shoulder. “Is Brandon awake yet?”

Seth shook his head as he watched his mother cook. “Nope.”

“I hope you’re not upset.. I sent him in to lay with you while I made breakfast.”

Seth shrugged a little. “It’s okay, I’m fine with either of you two.”

“As long as you were okay with it,” she smiled softly, handing him a plate of food. “Now eat up, back to school today.”

Seth tensed up at the word school. He really really didn’t want to go back, especially after his nightmare last night. It would just send him into another panic attack.

“Seth..,” he slowly looked up at his mother.

“I don’t want to go mom,” he whispered, hearing footsteps come down the hall.

“You’re gonna go to school like every other kid. Whether you like it or not boy,” he heard his dad’s voice growl as he took his place at the head of the table.

“But dad -,” he was cut off.

“No Seth. I’m not having the police come after me for you not being in school all over some shit that happened in the past. Grow the hell up and get over it,” his dad yelled, slamming a hand on the table.

Seth nodded a little as his body shook. He quietly excused himself from the table, leaving his plate of breakfast untouched. Tears spilled from his eyes as he made his way back up to his room and away from the sound of his parents arguing. 

“Everything okay little bro?” Brandon asked from his doorway.

Seth weakly shook his head as he walked right past him and into his own room, slamming the door shut behind him. He didn’t understand why his dad had to be so hard on him. He was trying so hard to be the kid that he wanted him to be, but it never seemed to be enough. And as if that wasn’t enough, his parents relationship was at a fault. All they’ve been doing was arguing because Seth’s dad just didn’t know how to be considerate towards Seth’s feelings. His dad on the other hand thought his mother was babying him and that he needed to grow up.

He dug out his little box that contained his hidden blades before adding a series of new marks on his thigh. He leaned his head back against his bed as he felt the pain course through him. It was almost soothing..

A knock on his door ripped him from his thoughts. He jumped a little, shoving his blade back in the box and slipping it under his pillow. He pulled his pants back up before he came to the door. He slowly opened it to meet his mother’s worried gaze and tear stained cheeks.

“Seth, are you okay?” She asked softly.

He shrugged in return, not really up for talking.

He watched as his mom bit her lip. “Well hurry up and get changed. I’m taking you and Brandon to school today.. I have to talk to you boys something..”

He nodded a little, feeling a bit of panic bubble up inside his chest. A “talk” in this family was never a good thing. Seth couldn’t help but think it had something to do with his dad’s blow up.

He pushed the thoughts from his mind as he stared into his closet. Brown eyes scanned all the clothes hanging from his hangers. Most of them were black, his favorite color. Finally, he had settled on a simple band shirt and a pair of black skinny jeans. He also slipped on a hoodie for good measure, knowing he’d get cold at some point during the day. He slipped his feet into his black converse before he walked off to brush his teeth.

********************************************

A million thoughts were running through Dean’s mind as he walked to school Monday morning. Yet again, his moms current boyfriend had been awake while he was trying to get ready, making his miss the bus. He couldn’t understand what about him was so interesting to the drunken man. 

He sighed as he brushed his bangs out of his eyes. The same person had been on his mind the whole weekend, making it a bit more bearable, even while he received hit after hit to his body.

He had been able to cover most of the bruises up since they had been littered over his chest and back. His plain old leather jacket had been one to do the job perfectly. He had only hoped he didn’t have gym class today.

Ten minutes later, he made his way back into the hell that was his school. The sound of morning chatter reaching his ears as he walked down the hall to his locker. He made quick work of his lock before tossing his tattered backpack inside. Monday’s were his off days by choice, so he didn’t bother getting anything other than a pencil before slamming the door once again.

Bright blue eyes scanned the surroundings around him, looking to see if his Samoan best friend was anywhere near. Unfortunately for him, he was no where to be found. He let out a soft sigh as he started to head towards his first period class. If Roman wasn’t around, there was no point in him sticking around in the halls where Nikki and her crew usually hung around. He wasn’t in the mood to be taunted and teased today.

As he made his way down the hall, his eyes landed on a familiar figure. Dark brown curls framed his thin face, laying on his shoulders while the chocolate brown eyes focused on the lock that he just couldn’t open. Dean’s heart thumped quicker in his chest, his bright blue eyes locked onto the smaller boy. 

He slowly made his way over, stopping beside the boy.

“Hey,” he greeted softly, watching as Seth startled slightly. “Shit I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you..” A light frown appeared on his face.

“Oh uh, it’s okay,” Seth said shyly, eyes looking anywhere but Dean’s face.

“You need some help with that?” He nodded towards Seth’s lock.

“Please?” was the meek response.

Dean smiled a little and nodded. “Of course.” 

Seth stepped aside a little, his body tense as Dean worked on his lock beside him. He studied the other boy’s face. Seth couldn’t deny that he was handsome because he was. His eyes were a beautiful shade of blue, covered a bit by the shaggy auburn hair. His face was a bit round, boyish almost, but he had the deepest (and probably the cutest) set of dimples Seth had ever seen. 

“Seth?” Dean gazed up at the boy, his brows were drawn together as his eyes were focused solely on Dean.

“Huh?” His chocolate eyes popped a little before meeting his own baby blues.

“I got your locker open..” he trailed off a bit.

“Thank you,” Seth smiled a little as he put his stuff away, the tense feeling slowly easing out of his body. There was still a burning question in his mind though. 

“Dean? Can I ask you something?” Seth glanced over at him. 

“Yeah, go ahead,” his eyes focused on the smaller male.

“So my brother said your friend was asking about me.. for you..,” Seth started, watching Dean’s cheeks turn red. “I just wanna know why..”

“Well, I uh.. I just wondered where you went is all,” Dean answered shyly, gazing down at his boots. 

Seth studied Dean for a moment, thinking about his words. As he opened his mouth to respond to the other male, a different, higher pitched voice rang out. 

“Oh look who finally found himself a girlfriend,” a girl said as she stopped in front of the both of them, another girl and two guys flanking her sides.

“HE is not a girl,” Dean rolled his eyes, spitting at the girl. “If you really must know.”

“Could’ve sworn with those locks he was a girl. He has nicer hair than half these girls in this school,” Seth felt her eyes rake over his body. He tensed up a bit and looked away.

“What’s wrong pretty boy? Not used to being checked out?,” the taller blonde boy teased. “With an ass like that, we’d be surprised if Ambrose over here hasn’t smashed that yet.”

Seth felt his heartbeat pick up as the group broke out into laughter. He had to get out of there and away from these people before he broke into a full blown panic attack. With tears threatening to fall, he pushed past the group, hurrying down the hall the the bathroom. He knew coming to school was a bad idea. 

He locked himself in a stall before he let his tears fall. He sat himself on a toilet, pulling his knees up to his chest. Today was a day from hell. There was no other way for him to describe it.

“Seth?” A voice questioned from outside the stall. “Are you in here?”

Dean. Seth recognized his voice right away.

“Y-yeah,” he wiped his eyes, not budging from his spot.

“Are you okay?,” Dean asked gently, his boots coming to rest right beneath the door.

“No. Nothing I haven’t handled before though,” he sniffled a little.

Dean was quiet for a few moments before he spoke again.

“Look, Nikki and her cronies are bitches. They’ve been after me for years now.. their words can be cruel. I know that better than everyone else.. I might not know what is personally going on in your life but I want you to know that I’m here for you, okay? In whatever you need.. a friend, a study buddy, a shoulder to cry on, or even just to talk. I’m always here, okay?” Dean poured his heart out to the boy in the stall.

He didn’t know what exactly he was thinking in doing that. It had been quiet from the other side of the door, not even as much as a sniffle from Seth. That was, until the door flew open and small but strong arms wrapped around his neck. The smaller males body collided with his as he hugged Dean tight.

Slowly, Dean wrapped his arms back around Seth. He didn’t think he said anything all that touching, but it must have been something to Seth for him to open up like this.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth admits some things to his therapist.. and to his brother.

“So Seth, tell me about school,” his therapist asked.

Seth picked at the hem of his shirt as he relaxed in the chair. If he was being honest, he really didn’t want to be here. It’s not that he didn’t like his therapist, he just didn’t like opening up. He knew it would make his mother happy though, so he decided to suck it up for her.

“It’s alright,” he replied softly, eyes focused on his shirt.

“Just alright?” Seth glanced over to see her write on her clipboard.

“I mean, it’s as expected. You have the jocks, the nerds, and the ones in between. It’s just like any old high school,” he replied, his eyes fixed on his therapist.

“But how is it for YOU, Seth,” she emphasized. “Your mom told me you’ve been going more than you have before. It that true?”

Seth nodded in response. He HAD been going to school more. After he and Dean had talked things out, Seth had slowly started talking to the boy more. Having not only Brandon but now Dean, and even Roman to an extent, was beginning to make going to school more bearable for him.

“Have you made any friends?”

Seth nodded again, picturing Dean in his mind. A small smile made its way onto his lips as he thought about the auburn haired boy. 

“Can you tell me their name?” He had heard her ask, watching her write something else down.

“Dean..” Seth said softly.

His eyes met Mrs. Johnston’s, watching as she slowly started to smile. He knew exactly what she had been smiling about. It was a big breakthrough for Seth.

“Dean’s a boy, correct?” Seth nodded. “Do you know what this means Seth?”

Seth knew what it had meant, but he shook his head just to enlighten his therapist. He could only imagine her surprise if he had also told her about hugging Dean. He was sure that she’d have a fit.

“You’ve made another breakthrough. You’ve allowed another boy to get close to you. Seth, sweetie, this is big,” she smiled wide as she wrote away at her clipboard.

“Cool,” Seth replied, dismissing her. All he really wanted was to just go home.

He wanted to curl up in his nice warm bed. Where the whole world would go away for a little bit. That and it gave him time to think, until someone came in to lay with him of course. 

His wish came sooner than expected. Mrs. Johnston asked only a few more questions about how he was feeling mentally, which Seth had no interest in answering, before she led him back out to his mom. He walked into his mothers waiting arms, nuzzling his face into her neck as she rubbed his back gently.

“How’d it go sweetie?” she asked gently as she ran a hand through Seth’s hair. 

He shrugged in response. 

“Well why don’t we go get some ice cream? We don’t have to pick Bran up from football practice until 5:30..”

Seth picked his head up at the mention of ice cream. No matter how old he got, he always was up for some ice cream with his mama.

“I’m guessing that’s a yes?” his mom chuckled softly as Seth nodded his head quickly.

“There’s my boy.” A smile made its way onto his face as his mother kissed his forehead.

They left shortly after, and as promised, Seth was presented with a large Oreo blizzard while his mom got a plain vanilla cone. They sat in the car in silence, both digging into their ice cream.

It was one of the many things Seth enjoyed doing with his mother. He remembered being little and his mom taking him for ice cream, taking him to the park, or even just cuddling up with him on the couch to watch movies on a rainy day. His mother had always been willing to do these things with Seth, unlike his father.

Seth’s father was the type of guy who values what he had. Except he tended to put value into the wrong things. Brandon was a perfect example. He was easily the son that any dad would’ve killed to have. He kept straight A’s, was basically a pro at any sport he played, and he had the looks that had the girls all over him. It was easy to point out that he was their fathers favorite. 

Seth, on the other hand, wasn’t as valued by his father. He constantly talked down on him, saying he was too scrawny and sickly, even before the incident happened. Even when Seth tried out for the basketball team and found himself to be pretty decent, his dad still wasn’t impressed. And boy did he throw a fit whenever Seth came out. 

So needless to say, Seth should’ve foreseen his parents divorce coming. His mom hated the way that he treated Seth, and he felt the same way about her. Ever since the incident though, things got worse, which ultimately led to their recent separation. In a way, he felt relieved that he didn’t have to feel scared of being talked down to anymore, or to have his problems rubbed in his face. He did feel bad though for his moms sake. 

He could tell that it hurt her sometimes. His dad had been his mothers first love, all that she had ever wanted. But as they say, things change over time, including people. He watched firsthand at how their relationship slowly destroyed itself, and his dad was the one to blame.

After his ice cream was finished, he placed the cup into a cup holder. He leaned the seat back a bit, gazing out the window while his mother drove back towards the school. His eyes began to grow a bit heavy before his mom was speaking to him, running a hand through his hair.

“Can you please go get Brandon sweetie?” She asked gently.

“Mm do I have to?” he mumbled, slowly shutting his eyes again. 

“Please bubba? Its been a long day for me too.. plus I just bought you ice cream”

Seth let out a small sigh. After all she does to put up with his ass on a daily basis, he could do this for her. “Alright mama, I’ll go”

He watched as a bright smile made its way onto her face. She wrapped an arm around his shoulders in a half hug as she kissed his temple. “That’s my boy, now go on before Brandon thinks we forgot him.”

A slight chuckle escaped his lips as he climbed out of the car. He made his way over to the field, big brown eyes scanning the area for his older brother. His heart fluttered a bit when his eyes landed on his brother sitting beside his friend Roman, and a certain auburn haired boy. A slight smile made its way onto his lips as he slowly made his way over to them.

“Hey little brother,” Brandon’s voice rang out, his arm sneaking around his shoulders in some form of a hug.

“Hey Bran.. hey Dean..,” Seth’s eyes slowly glanced over at Dean, blue eyes meeting brown.

“Hey Sethie,” Dean smiled softly at him, a light blush forming on Seth’s cheeks. 

God he hoped his brother didn’t notice. He’d never hear the end of it. Little did he know that his brother had already seen what Seth wished he hadn’t.

The four boys talked for a bit before heading back to their waiting mother. Seth couldn’t help but peek back over his shoulder at Dean one last time, seeing Dean laughing happily with Roman. He didn’t know what it was about him, but he made him feel safe. 

********************************************

Brandon could sense something was up with Seth. His little brother hadn’t been fighting their mother to go to school the past week, he had been going willingly. That and he could swear he caught his little brother blushing earlier when he came to retrieve him from practice. 

After dinner, Brandon watched as Seth had excused himself to his room. He had helped his mother clear the table and do the dishes before heading upstairs himself. He quietly made his way upstairs before knocking on his brothers door.

“Yeah?” was the confused reply.

“It’s Brandon.. mind if I come in?” he said softly, hearing a bit of shuffling before Seth appeared at the door.

“I mean, if you want to,” he looked at him.

“Yeah.. I just wanna talk is all,” Brandon frowned a little at the hesitation on Seth’s face.

“Alright...” Seth laid back down, his eyes never leaving his brothers.

“So I couldn’t help but notice the way you lit up when you seen Dean,” Brandon started softly, seeing a light blush creep onto Seth’s cheeks.

“I did not..”

“Buddy you did.. and you blushed a little too.. I just wanna know what’s going on there..”

“There’s nothing going on Brandon, I don’t like Dean,” Seth whined a little, hiding his face.

“Seth, you know it’s okay if you do, right?”

No answer from his brother. 

“Bud.. are you scared he’s gonna hurt you too?”

A slight cry pierced the air.

“Oh Seth..,” Brandon frowned, gently scooping his brother up into his arms.

He felt as Seth buried his face into his neck. He held his baby brother close, rubbing gentle circles onto his back as his body shook.

“You know there’s no need to be scared buddy.. Not everyone is like Jason. Especially Dean.. Roman’s told me a bit about Dean’s home life the other day at practice, and bud, I assure you he’d never want to hurt you..”

“W-what do you mean?,” Seth sniffled, his big brown eyes gazing up into his own.

“I can’t tell you Dean’s story, that’s his own to tell, but I know he won’t ever hurt you.. listen, I know you’re scared to be close to another person like that, but I’m telling you Seth. Once you meet the one, you’ll know. And something already told me that you met him,” Brandon smoothed back his brothers hair.

Seth stayed quiet for a little while, lost in his own head. The sound of both of their breathing was the only thing that could be heard in the room.

“I.. I think I like him,” came Seth’s soft admittance. Brandon smiled to himself.

“And that’s perfectly okay bud.. I say go for it. Just make sure Dean knows your boundaries so you don’t get hurt, okay?” He felt Seth nod against his shoulder.

They sat like that for awhile. Brandon’s gentle back rubbing calming Seth down until he was fast asleep and snoring softly. He gently managed to lay Seth down without waking him up. He tucked his brother in and kissed his head before heading back to his own room.

He’s glad he got the answer out of Seth that he had wanted. Now he’d just have to sit back and watch things plays out for his little brother, being there whenever he needed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Sorry for the long wait on the update. I had severe writers block with both of my stories. I hope you guys enjoy!


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean let’s Seth in on the secret of how he got his bruises. Seth comforts him as much as he can.

Dean showed up for school Monday morning with his head hung low. Last night had been a very, VERY, long night that he was still feeling the effects of. 

It all started at about one in the morning. Dean was fast asleep, when his mother’s current boyfriend threw the door open. He faintly remembers being shaken awake all the while the guy screamed in his face something about Dean drinking his alcohol.

He had made the mistake of replying sleepily. It had only made the boyfriend, (who’s name was Jack? Dean didn’t care to know), even angrier than he had been before.

Before Dean even had a chance to react, still a bit out of it from being asleep, the bigger man’s fists were raining down on him. He yelped a little, trying his best to fight back, but it just wasn’t working for him. He wasn’t winning this fight.

After a few minutes of him beating the shit out of Dean, he wrapped his hands around his neck. When his mother finally wandered her way into the room, she screamed before she took off to call the cops. They hauled him away, but that didn’t take away any of the pain in Dean’s mind and heart. In fact, it really only made him feel worse as he shut his mother out of his room. He wasn’t in the mood to listen to her fake apologies and false promises to change her ways. Things always stayed the same.

So it’s safe to say Dean cried himself to sleep that night. Quietly though, he didn’t need his mother trying to force her way back in to try and comfort him. The only person he wanted was on the other side of town, hopefully nestled up in his own bed. Even he probably didn’t want him.

Needless to say, Dean was sporting some bruises. He had a nasty shiner underneath his right eye, along with the bruises that littered his stomach and upper body. He tried to hide them all the best he could, but he didn’t know how well that was going to work out. He unfortunately had gym class today.

He made his usual trip to his locker, tossing his unwanted items in it before slamming the door. He picked his head up a little, blue eyes scanning his surroundings. A few pairs of eyes were focused on him, until they quickly looked away, hoping he didn’t catch them staring. Except a pair of pretty brown doe eyes.

A small smile wormed its way onto Dean’s lips as he made his way over to Seth. He couldn’t help but notice the concerned look on the younger boy’s face as he leaned against the locker next to his.

“W-what happened to your eye?,” he asked, gently reaching out to touch it.

“I uh.. it’s a long, boring story. I’ll tell you some other time..,” Dean tried to brush his question off, not really wanting to talk about it. Too bad for him, Seth was smarter than that.

“Dean..,” Seth said softly, eyes staring up into Dean’s through his thick glasses.

He sighed softly, brushing some hair out of his face. “I’ll tell you someday Seth, I just.. it’s not good and this definitely isn’t the right place to tell you..”

Seth nodded a little, biting his lower lip a little. “Would uh.. my house be the right place? You know.. after school?”

Dean blinked a little, staring at the shorter boy. “You’d really be okay with that?”

Seth nodded a little “Yeah.. my mom kind of wants to meet you anyways.. Brandon told her about you.”

Dean thought for a moment. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt going over for awhile. Plus, it would save him from having to go to the hell he calls home for a few hours.

“Sure, I’d love to come over,” Dean smiles a bit at the bright grin that made its way onto Seth’s face. 

“Awesome! I mean uh, it won’t be until I get home. I have a, um.. important thing to do and then you can come over.. if you stick around after football we can just pick you and Brandon both up?”

Dean threw a curious glance at Seth, but decided not to push it. Especially since the kid was actually inviting him over. 

“Yeah, that’s perfect to me.”

Dean doesn’t think he’s ever seen anything as beautiful as Seth’s smile right then.

********************************************

Seth was a bundle of nerves all day. He couldn’t help but be nervous when Dean was coming over to his house. The place where he lived. Where he still slept in bed with his mother sometimes. Where he could completely be himself. 

What if Dean knew the truth about him?

Would Dean make fun of him?

Would he say he’s a baby and laugh in his face?

 

The thoughts were endless and they had his stomach a wreck. He squirmed in his seat at his therapy appointment, earning looks from his therapist. She, of course, had to pry the details out of him, despite him not wanting to tell her anything about it. 

He also couldn’t help but squirm on the way to pick up Brandon and Dean. His mom tried her best to help calm him by rubbing his shoulder and offering encouraging words. It didn’t necessarily help him out though. He was still a mess. He was still afraid. He still had all the doubts in the world. He did know however that he could do this. He had to do this, for himself and for Dean.

When his mom took her usual spot in the parking lot, Seth climbed out. He took a deep breath and held his head high, making his way down to the field. 

He was greeted with the sight of Roman and Brandon wrestling around while Dean played referee. It made him smile as he stood beside Dean, giggling.

“They’re fighting over a McDonalds Apple pie,” Dean chuckled, stealing a glance over at him. 

“Are you kidding?” Seth burst out laughing. Leave it to his brother to get stuck in some over something so stupid.

“No, not at all,” Dean flashed a grin as he held the empty box up. “Little do they know I already ate it.”

“You did what?” Both pairs of eyes spun to land on Dean’s shit-eating grin.

“Oh but I did boys. But I did,” Dean chuckled as they untangled themselves from each other.

“Can’t believe you uce,” Roman shook his head, playfully punching Dean’s arm. Seth watched as Dean winced ever so slightly. He frowned a little, making a mental note to ask him about it later.

“I’d love to stay but Mom’s making Alfredo and there’s no way I’m missing that,” Brandon stated. “You picked a great night to invite him over Seth.”

Seth nodded, smiling a little as he followed Brandon back to the car. Dean being right beside him the whole time. 

Brandon, being the little shit that he was, stole Seth’s spot in the front seat. He blushes a little as he slid into the seat behind his mother as she turned around to greet Dean. 

Tonight should be an interesting night.

********************************************

After dinner, Seth gave Dean a bit of a tour around the house before taking him up to his room. He gently shut the door behind them before taking a seat in the chair at his desk.

“Alright.. spill it,” Seth said, staring up at Dean who had been nervously fidgeting around for the past 10 minutes.

“Okay okay, pushy much?” Dean teased half heartedly.

Seth frowned a little, playing with his hand in his lap.

“Well I guess it would make more sense to show you everything,” Dean said quietly, fumbling with the hem of his shirt before slowly starting to pull his shirt off.

Seth tensed up a bit, not liking where things were going. That was, until he took a look at what Dean was hiding underneath his shirt..

Tears sprung to Seth’s eyes as they skimmed over the black and blue bruises. He didn’t understand. Why would someone do this to another human being? Then again, he did understand because he too had been on the other end of assault. Just a different kind.

“D-dean..,” Seth spoke gently, sniffling softly. “Who did this to you?” 

“Im gonna start from the very beginning. Is that okay?” Dean asked as he slid his shirt back on, cheeks bright red in embarrassment.

“Yeah that’s okay,” Seth said, barely a whisper.

Dean took a seat on the edge of Seth’s bed. He let out a sigh as he slowly ran a hand through his hair. A very small part of Seth wanted to go to Dean, to comfort him. But he knew that wasn’t going to happen.

“My dad left when I was a baby,” Dean started, shaking Seth from his overactive mind. “He didn’t want the responsibility of being a father, so one day he just up and left. My mom never really was the same after that. She took care of the two of us, and for awhile we were doing great. Until one night she went out for drinks with her friends. She met number one that night. He got her hooked on coke, telling her it’ll ease her stress and shit. Well it only kicked off her downward spiral. The first night she brought him to stay with us overnight, he beat the shit out of me. I was only around five or six.” 

Seth frowned, noticing the glassy look in Dean’s eyes. He swallowed a little before he continued on with his story.

“When she found me the next morning, she freaked out. We packed up and moved here. But it didn’t stop anything. She didn’t bring anyone else home right away, but when she did, she really picked the winners. Not all of them beat me. Some of them verbally assaulted me, but some genuinely cared. Some genuinely cared about her too, but if they didn’t have the coke, she didn’t want them. And well, last night her boyfriend of the week beat me and tried to choke me out. I didn’t even do anything to him. I just, I don’t get it.”

When Dean’s tears started to fall, Seth was by his side instantly. He did the simple things his mother did with him to try and help calm Dean, or at least provide some comfort.

“Dean.. I’m so sorry you had to go through that. No one deserves to ever be assaulted in anyway. Believe me, I know,” Seth added, but not enough delve into his own problems. He just hoped Dean didn’t pick up on it.

He gently reached up to wipe a gentle thumb across Dean’s wet cheeks.

“I promise I’m here for you. No one should go through these things alone.. ever,” Seth whispered before wrapping his arms around Dean’s shoulders, feeling Dean lay his head on his shoulder.

“T-thank you Seth,” was Dean’s faint response. “I really appreciate.”

“You’re so welcome,” Seth ran a hand through Dean’s hair, just the way Seth liked having it done to himself. 

Dean may have been through hell before, but it was just another thing that brought them closer together. And if one thing was for sure, it was that Seth wanted to be in it for the long haul. He wanted to help Dean, be there for Dean, maybe even be with Dean. There was just something about him.

And Seth decided he wanted to fight his own demons for Dean. Because he was worth it.

They both were.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update guys! I’m trying to alternate between which stories I update. Either way, I hope you enjoy!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth and Dean have their own little homecoming dance in Seth’s living room, that is, until everything falls apart.

Dean pulled his hoodie up over his head, blocking out the bitter chill of the October air. Fall was in full swing, leaves were falling, the wind was blowing, and pumpkin flavored everything was everywhere you looked. 

Along with fall, came all the girls’ favorite time of the year. If they were lucky enough, a guy would ask them out to the big homecoming dance. Dean knew Roman and Brandon were going, Roman with a quiet but sweet girl named Sasha and Brandon with his girlfriend Alexa. Both boys pestered Dean to try and find a date so he could come as well, but he had no interest in going with another girl, even as friends. There was only one person he’d ever consider going with, but he was way too afraid beyond belief to even suggest it. That and he couldn’t afford a tuxedo.

He hummed a little to himself as he made his way into the school. Everyone was buzzing about the game tonight, but more so the dance. He chuckled lightly to himself, keeping his head down as he went to his locker.

His usual morning routine went rather quick as he threw his tattered backpack into his locker. He slammed it shut and before long he found himself back at Seth’s side. 

The smaller male’s appearance caught him slightly off guard. (Along with a surge of butterflies in his gut.)

“Hi Dean,” Seth smiled up at him, glasses absent from his face along with his hair tied into a neat bun at the nape of his neck. He looked undeniably handsome.

“Hey, where’d your glasses go?” Dean asked curiously, still a little bit caught up in Seth’s pretty brown eyes.

“I got contacts.. why? Do I look funny?,” he questioned, biting his lip nervously.

“Funny? When don’t you look funny?” A voice rang out, startling them both. Dean’s blue eyes narrowed as they landed on a certain Nikki Bella and her posse who just had to stick their noses in at the worst time.

“Oh Dean, are you taking your girlfriend to homecoming tonight? I bet she’d look great in a dress,” Brie teased. 

Dean felt the frown on his face grow as he felt the boy in question tense up beside him. The anger that coursed through him at that moment, surprised him.

“I’m going to tell you ladies something, and I want you to listen close,” he spat towards them.

“One, this is Seth. Seth is a BOY not a GIRL. And two, you better leave him the hell alone.” Dean growled, dead serious.

“Or what? Are you gonna hit us?,” Nikki asked, smirking at him.

“Not you, but your bleached blonde bitch I might. Or maybe even the goat boy. So please, do yourself a favor and fuck off before I do something I might regret. Go piss someone else off,” he glared, meeting eyes with each one of them.

Nikki scoffed before Nick stuck his face right up to Dean’s. “You think you’re tough boy? Well you got another thing coming,” he said through gritted teeth.

Dean didn’t back down. “I’ll be waiting.” He said with a flat tone.

His angry blue eyes stayed locked into Nick’s before the blonde slowly backed off at Nikki’s command. Never once did his eyes leave the group until they were far enough down the hall that they disappeared into the crown of all the other students.

A gentle hand on his arm brought him back to the present. All the tension fled his body as he glanced back over at Seth.

“You feeling okay?” He asked softly as Seth nodded.

“I just don’t get why they pick on me, out of everyone else, they choose me,” he said softly, confused.

“It’s because of me,” dean sighed softly. “Nikki and I have a little bit of a history.. which is a story for another time, but they harass anyone they see me with. Besides Roman. He kicked Nick’s ass once and threatened to do it again in a heartbeat.”

Seth nodded a little as he got lost in his head, and Dean knew the curiosity was gonna get to the smaller male.

He chuckled softly as he rested a hand on Seth’s shoulder. “Cmon, I’ll tell you.”

And he did. He’d tell Seth anything as long as it meant that he’d be there with him. Always.

*****************************************

 

Stating that Seth was going to kill Brandon was an understatement. He was going to fucking demolish his older brother. 

Lunch had started out innocent enough. Brandon, Alexa, Roman, Dean and himself were all situated at their usual table in the middle of the cafeteria when the topic came up. Seth all but choked on his lunch.

“Brandon I don’t need a babysitter,” he insisted.

“Little brother, you know mom’s not gonna let you just stay home alone while she’s chaperoning the dance tonight,” Brandon stated, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

That alone was enough to make Seth’s cheeks heat up. He didn’t want all his friend, let alone Dean, knowing about any of his private life. He knew it was selfish, considering Dean told him about his hellish life, but he was too afraid he’d look at him differently.

“I’ll be fine, I stay home alone all the time,” he tried to argue, making his brother laugh.

“Okay mister hardass, whatever you say. Have fun being coddled by gramma,” Brandon smirked lightly as Seth glared at him.

The next words that flew out of his mouth were not very thought through and he damn well knew that. 

“I don’t need gramma when Dean’s already coming over to hang out with me while you’re all gone,” he blurted, fighting off the surprise his words gave him.

His doe eyes met Dean’s beautiful baby blues, full of surprise. Seth silently prayed Dean picked up on his mistake.

“Yeah, Seth and I had this planned out for like two weeks now,” Dean replied, his eyes left Seth’s to gaze towards his brother. “You’d know if your head wasn’t up Alexa’s ass.”

It was Brandon’s turn to blush while the rest of the table cracked up.

“I do no-, never mind that. I guess I was wrong. I hope you two have a wonderful time tonight,” Brandon muttered, still slightly embarrassed at Dean’s words.

“Oh I’m sure we will,” Seth smirked proudly, even though he was panicking on the inside.

Even though he and Dean have gotten significantly closer, Seth wasn’t sure if he was ready to be completely alone with him. During the day, they were alone together, but not technically due to the clusterfuck of people around them. Anytime they had hung out, Brandon, Roman, or whoever was either there or in a different room, depending on where they were.

He trusted Dean. He trusted Dean more than he’s trusted another male since ‘the incident’, and it honestly scared him. It was cliche, but there was something about the boy that drew Seth in. It’s not like he wanted to be afraid because he really didn’t. He wanted to dive headfirst into whatever these feelings towards Dean were, but he couldn’t. He was scared. Well, more like terrified.

Oh well, he guessed it was just another thing he should bring up to his therapist next week. For now, however, he was going to focus on how to survive this evening.

*****************************************

Dean whistled to himself as he made the trek over to Seth’s house. The younger male had offered to give him a ride, but Dean really didn’t mind walking. It helped him clear his mind and to mentally prepare himself. 

He was honestly confused as to how this had all been set up. Not that he was really going to sit and think about it though. He was sure Seth would tell him if he wanted to.

The worn boots on his feet scuffed against the sidewalk as his thoughts turned to Seth. There was no doubt that Dean was attracted to the younger male. Every time he laid eyes on him, his heart went wild in his chest. But even then, Dean was a bit afraid.

Brandon had mentioned a few things about his brother here and there over the course of the time he’d began to hang out with him. He heard that Seth was a bit shy, hell, Dean already figured that much out. Time had also shown Dean that Seth also wasn’t very social with other people. In fact, he made it his job to ignore everyone around him by donning a pair or earbuds whenever he was by himself. Dean had also noticed the younger boy’s tension around other males, including himself when they had first met.

As much as he wanted to ask Seth about it, he never did out of respect. He considered himself lucky that Seth even wanted to be around him, considering how he worked so hard to keep with distance with everyone other than the few people in their friend group. So he kept it to himself. Maybe Seth would tell him someday, maybe not. It wouldn’t change much for Dean. He’d always see Seth the same way, no matter what.

Dean couldn’t help but chuckle to himself as Seth’s house came into view. The boy’s mother had him outside, taking pictures with his brother and his homecoming date. He looked utterly miserable by the whole ordeal.

“Hello Mrs. Rollins,” he greeted politely as he walked up.

“Oh Dean! Get in the picture sweetie,” she said excitedly, leading Dean over to stand right beside Seth.

“Howdy partner,” Dean chuckled as he greeted him, eyes glancing up to the camera. He didn’t even have to try and smile, he was already sporting a decent one just from seeing Seth.

“I’m ready to be done with this,” Seth mumbled. “She’s been at it for a half an hour straight.”

After a few more moments, Seth’s mother finally gave up with the picture taking. There was was only enough Seth could take and Dean could tell he certainly had enough. 

They made their way inside, kicking off their shoes by the door before collapsing on the couch. There was silence between them as they watched the other three ran around them, finishing up last minute things before they left.

After a quick “bye baby, I love you” and a few quick kisses to Seth’s cheeks and forehead, Seth’s mother finally ushered Brandon and Alexa out of the house. Dean wasn’t really fond of silence, so he decided to break it.

“So.. what do you want to do?” His eyes glanced over in Seth’s direction.

The younger male had his head resting against the back of the sofa, dark brown eyes staring off straight ahead of him. He had traded his contacts out for his glasses, Dean had noted. Other than the flush fading off of his cheeks, he looked at peace.

“We can do whatever, I have a bit of homework to work on actually,” he sat up, pushing his glasses back up his nose as he did so. “Do you?”

“I do, but I don’t really know how to do it,” Dean admitted shyly, looking down a bit.

“I can help.. you know, if you’d like,” cake Seth’s soft response.

“I’d like that,” A small smile worked its way into Dean’s face. 

And that’s exactly what they did. Seth worked on his math and English homework, doing it within record time. Dean stared on, watching his hand as he scribbled down answers to math work that he truly didn’t care to learn. But he did anyway, with the help of Seth.

After they had both finished their homework, they had dinner. Seth claimed he wasn’t much of a cook, so they settled on ordering a pizza. Turns out they both liked the same pizza toppings.

Dean couldn’t help but feel curious as they laid there. Seth was sprawled out on the couch, rubbing his full stomach gently while he stared in the direction of the tv while Dean laid on the floor on his back, gazing up at Seth.

“How come you didn’t go to the dance?” He asked once the show Seth had been watching went to commercial. 

“Who, me?” Seth startled a little, eyes flying down to meet Dean’s.

“Well considering you’re the only other person in the room,” Dean teased, a light smile on his face.

“Oh uh, I don’t know. Too many people for me. Not even like anyone would ask me,” Seth brushed the question off, fidgeting a little.

“You could’ve asked someone. No girls peaked your interest?”

Seth shook his head slowly. “I uh.. I’m not into girls,” was his quiet response.

“Boys?” Dean pushed further.

“T-there’s one guy that I wouldn’t have minded if he asked me,” Seth stuttered a little as the blush returned to his cheeks.

Dean chuckled softly. “Must be a hunk of a dude then.”

“He is..,” Seth giggled lightly.

“I know its not much and I’m not your dream date, but maybe we can have our own little homecoming right here.. we can dance, listen to music, and just hang out,” Dean suggested, watching Seth’s interest peak. “What do you say?”

“I don’t see why not.. might be a little more interesting than laying here watching tv..,” Seth replied after a few moments of thinking. 

With that, both boys climbed to their feet. Seth went to retrieve one of his Bluetooth speakers while Dean cleared a little spot that would serve as their dance floor. He shed his jacket, brushing some of the fuzz off his shirt in an attempt to beaten up a bit. Neither of them were nowhere near dressed for their little occasion, but they didn’t really care.

Dean fetched them drinks from the fridge as Seth turned on some music. It wasn’t necessarily Dean’s cup of tea,(he was much more interested in Metallica, AC/DC, or Def Leppard), but he wasn’t about to deny Seth of his music. No matter how emo it sounded.

*****************************************

Overall, their little “homecoming dance” had been amazing. Dean had succeeded in making Seth laugh so hard that he just about peed himself, just from his dancing alone. His Elvis impersonation however, just about killed the poor kid. Seth seemed to think he was a better dancer, but he had two left feet, just like Dean. 

Dean had enjoyed making Seth laugh and let loose a bit. The boy had one of the most amazing smiles that he had ever seen. His laugh, oh his dorky but amazing laugh, had Dean laughing just as hard. Seth’s happiness was very very contagious. He had made it his personal goal to get Seth to smile as much as possible.

After some crazy dancing, both boys found themselves resting on the couch. Seth panted softly beside him as they both fought to catch their breathes.

“I have to say Dean, this has been fun,” Seth smiled, turning his head to meet Dean’s eyes.

“See, you should listen to me more often!,” Dean joked, laughing lightly.

“Maybe I will,” Seth said, the music still playing in the background. 

“Well you know, there’s only one thing that we didn’t get to do yet,” Dean started slowly.

“And what’s that?”

“We didn’t get to slow dance..,” Dean said softly.

“Y-you actually want to?” Seth’s mocha colored eyes widened a little at Dean’s suggestion.

“I wouldn’t have suggested it if I didn’t mean it.. but if you don’t want to, it’s okay.”

“N-no, I’d love to dance with you Dean.”

Dean grinned lightly as he slowly rose to his feet. A hand slowly extended itself towards the younger male, who very slowly took it. He gently helped him up, leading him into their dance floor as, ironically enough, a slow song came through the speakers.

He gently rested his hands on Seth’s hips as Seth wrapped his arms around his shoulders.

“This good?” Dean whispered.

“It’s perfect,” Seth replied back in the same whispered tone.

Slowly, Dean started to sway them both along to the music. He smiled lightly, listening as Seth sang softly along with the song, resting his head on Dean’s shoulder. 

“You're more than just a friend so we can just stop pretending now. I gotta let you know somehow,” Seth sang softly into Dean’s chest, making his heart skip a beat.

He didn’t think things could get much better than they were right now. There he was, a beautiful boy wrapped up in his arms, slow dancing with him. Dean didn’t think he ever wanted this night to come to an end.

Seth picked his head up a little, leaning his forehead against Dean’s as they swayed to the music. As his heart hammered in his chest, Dean slowly gazed into Seth’s eyes and held his gaze. He looked so perfect. Dean wasn’t going to lie when he said he wanted to kiss Seth, right then and there. So he did.

Dean eyes flickered to Seth’s lips before he slowly leaned in and kissed them softly. He felt Seth kiss back lightly, almost afraid before he pulled away completely. The look on his face made Dean wish he could disappear on the spot. His eyes were wide with shock and pure terror. It made Dean’s blood run cold.

He watched with fear as Seth started to cry before bolting out of the room.

“S-Seth? Wait!” Dean tried to chase after him, but ended up with a door in his face and a hysterical Seth on the other end.

Tears sprung to his eyes as he slid down the wall. He had never meant to hurt Seth. Now what was his mother going to think? Brandon even? He was sure that he was in for an ass kicking at school on Monday. 

He didn’t know what he did wrong, but he wished a million times that he could take it back. He hurt Seth, somehow and it was breaking his own heart into a million little pieces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> FEEDBACK WANTED PLEASEEEEE!!!!!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean seeks out Seth while issues at school send Seth home to have a heart to heart with his mother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warning in this chapter, please don’t read if it makes you uncomfortable

Dean’s entire weekend had been spent worrying about Seth and dreading what was to come on Monday.

He had tried everything to get Seth to come out of his room that night. His coaxing has only led to the other boy screaming louder through the door. It had honestly scared the shit out of him. 

The guilt had hit him even harder once Brandon and his mom came home. Their happy, relaxed faces quickly turned to that of worry and fear once they heard Seth’s shrieks of terror. 

Their mother quickly rushed to his door, taking her turn in begging for Seth to unlock the door. Brandon had pulled Dean to the side, throwing all kinds of strange questions at him, accusing him of touching his brother. The words got caught in Dean’s throat as he tried to explain what had truly happened. 

“I.. All I did was kiss him. I’d never ever hurt him Brandon, you know that,” Dean choked out, tears running down his cheeks.

“Dean, I,” Brandon sighed a little as he ran a hand through his hair. “I think you should go. I’ll talk to you on Monday, okay?”

“But I..,” Dean started, but was cut off by the older boy.

“Look, I know you’re confused and upset, but having you here right now is only going to stress Seth out even more. I promise we’ll talk on Monday, but for now you have to go, alright?” He laid a gentle hand on Dean’s shoulder, giving it a squeeze as Dean nodded.

He left that night, hating himself for whatever he did wrong. The guilt, hurt, and confusion was enough to send him back to the shitty place that was his home. That night he drank himself silly. He didn’t want to feel anything anymore.

Once Monday morning rolled around, his stomach was in knots. He was scared that Seth wasn’t going to show up, let alone want anything to do with him. But he knew had to try. 

Seth had grown to be a great friend and someone that Dean could confide in. He didn’t push him away when he unleashed his feelings on him, along with all his secrets that only Roman knew. 

He missed that boy’s smile. He missed his nasally, but horribly contagious laughter. He missed him in general. He could only hope that he didn’t fuck everything up by letting his feelings blind him. Even though he already had the sinking feeling that he did. 

Dean’s thoughts clouded his mind as he made his way into the school. Anxious blue eyes scanned the hallway, searching for the head of curly dark brown hair that Seth possessed. He bit at his lip once he realized that Seth was nowhere to be seen.

“Fucking hell,” he mumbled to himself, leaning his forehead against his own locker.

He let out a sigh as he threw his bag into his locker. His next best bet was to try and find Brandon. They were supposed to be talking today, so now was as good of a time as ever. 

As he set off down the hall in search of the older Rollins brother, little did he know that the younger one had been there the whole time. 

*****************************************

To say the least, Seth felt like shit.

So much had happened in the last few days that had him going back to his old, dirty habits. Habits that he swore to his mother that he had quit. Then again, what she knew wouldn’t kill her. But it just might kill him. 

To think he had been doing better before all of this too. All of his hard work was for nothing. Now he was straight back to square one. All because of Dean.

It wasn’t that Seth didn’t like the kiss. In truth, he had been thinking about it quite a lot, the more that he hung around with Dean. He pondered the idea of ever being able to let himself go, to fall in love. To let someone else in. To let Dean in.

So when Dean did kiss him, he tried. He tried to like it. He tried to let it just happen. But even something as simple as a kiss had sent him into straight panic mode. 

He knew he freaked Dean out. The look of pure panic written on his face that night was more than Seth could handle. So he did what he did best. He ran from the issue. He ran from Dean. And he hated himself for it.

In his mind, he believed that Dean deserved better than him anyways. With all of the hell that Dean had endured during his life, he deserved to have someone there for him. He deserved to have someone to love, that would love him unconditionally in return. It hurt Seth to think of Dean with anyone else, but he just wasn’t the right person for that. He couldn’t even kiss the other boy without his unwanted thoughts being triggered. 

Besides, who would ever want a used up, broken person like him anyways? 

If it had been up to Seth, he wouldn’t have came to school at all today. He looked and felt like absolute hell. He hadn’t slept in two days, leaving him with dark bags beneath his chocolate eyes. His whole body felt heavy and weak from his lack of rest, along with the slight sting he felt when the material of his jeans dug into the fresh cuts littered along his thighs. 

He was ready to be done. Done with this school, done with all these stupid people, and just done with his life. He wanted it all to end, not caring about how it would affect others. It was beyond selfish, especially towards his family. They did all they could to help him, but yet here he was, trying to find a way to escape. 

Countless nights his mother called off work to spend the night with him at the hospital. His brother stayed home from school just to make sure Seth was never alone. Things were still like that, whether Seth was having a down day or just wanted the time to take a step back and collect his thoughts. 

School was never the place to recollect his thoughts. All the constant noise made his head ache as he shuffled his way into the boy’s locker room. As much as he would’ve loved to find a way to skip the class, his goody two shoes mind would never let him. So he tried his best to suck it up.

At first he didn’t hear the low chatter of the other boys. He was too focused on trying to change into his gym shorts as quick as humanly possible. That was until he heard the click of a camera and someone calling out to him.

“Hey Rollins, what the fuck happened to your thighs?,” some kid named Kevin called out.

Seth stopped dead in his tracks. His eyes flickered up, meeting the eyes of over half the gym class along with a few cellphone cameras. They were all staring in his direction, fixated on the angry red cuts on his skin. 

“I..I..,” he choked a little as the panic started to rise within him. 

Everyone was staring at him as if he were the most repulsive thing they’ve seen. It was like they knew of all the things he’d been through, the rape, the hospital, the therapy, everything. Next thing he knew, he was sinking down to his knees, tears streaming down his face as he struggled to keep himself together. 

“Hey! Back the hell off, okay? There’s nothing to see here,” a deep voice called out, making some of the boys step back a bit. 

Seth was too involved in trying to breathe to notice the gentle but protective hand that was rubbing his shoulder. He also didn’t remember being pulled into a pair of strong arms as he sobbed. Normally, he would’ve fought, not wanting anyone to see him that way, but he was just so weak..

“Seth, hey.. it’s okay,” the voice said again, but much softer. 

A soft mewl escaped Seth’s lips as he cracked his eyes open a little. Above him, Roman’s concerned gaze was locked onto him. Another sob ripped its way out of his chest as he buried his face in the larger boy’s neck.

“I wanna go home,” he whimpered softly, keeping his voice low.

“Why don’t we take you to the guidance office.. I’ll talk to coach and make sure nothing comes off your grade,” Roman suggested. “Besides, I want to talk to you about something anyways..”

Seth didn’t have it in him to even remotely pay attention to the end of Roman’s sentence. He was more interested in getting the hell out of this school. All he wanted right now was to be in his mother’s arms.

He slowly pulled himself out of Roman’s arms, climbing to his unsteady feet. Slowly, he was able to pull his jeans and shoes back on as he waited for the Samoan to return. The hood of his sweatshirt returned to its spot over top of his head, hiding both his shame and his face. 

After what felt like an hour, Roman finally reappeared. The look of sympathy was back on his face, making Seth feel even worse. Sympathy was the last thing he had ever wanted. 

“Cmon..,” was all he said before he was helping Seth to his feet.

No words were spoken as the boys made their way to the guidance office. Roman kept his gaze ahead as Seth followed along, keeping his head down. Usually silence left Seth with an uneasy feeling, but the silence with Roman felt surprisingly comfortable. 

Once they got to guidance, Seth made sure to check in before he took a seat. Roman explained something to the lady at the desk before taking the seat beside the smaller boy. This time however, he wasn’t as quiet.

“Look, I know it’s not really any of my business, but I just want to know if you’re okay.. Dean told me about what happened that other night,” Roman said, playing with his hands before looking up to meet Seth’s scared brown eyes.

“What? Why the hell was he telling you my business?,” Seth said, suddenly feeling slight discomfort.

“First off, it’s not just your business. Dean was a part of it too. And second, he’s like my brother. My family takes care of him more than his own worthless mother does. And I don’t appreciate what you did to him. He was messed up the entire weekend, worrying that he hurt you,” Roman said sternly, making Seth slowly curl into himself in embarrassment and guilt.

“I.. I didn’t mean it,” he mumbled quietly. “I just.. s-something happened to me over a year ago. Something r-really bad.. and a-sometimes I still struggle with it.. I never wanted to hurt him.”

Roman’s gaze softened as he noticed the tears starting to roll down Seth’s cheeks once again. He gently put an arm around the boy’s shoulders comfortingly.

“Hey.. it’s okay. I didn’t mean to make you cry again,” Roman said slowly. “Why don’t you just talk to Dean, tell him what happened.”

Seth’s eyes widened. “N-no, I can’t..”

“Why not?”

“I’m afraid he’ll look at me differently,” Seth said, in barely a whisper as he gazed down.

What he wasn’t expecting was the chuckle that came out of Roman. 

“Seth, dude, I don’t think there’s anything you could’ve done to make him look at you any differently. The boy is head over heels for you.”

“H-he is?”

“You can’t tell?”

Seth shook his head. “I’ve never really, you know.. Had anyone like me like that before..”

“Well bud, you better get used to it,” was the last thing Seth heard before they were calling his name, and before he disappeared back into his own head.

*****************************************

Seth stared off at the wall as his mother fussed over him. She wasn’t really pleased about having to find out that her son was self harming again, especially through the school. Someone just had to go and turn him in..

“Seth Daniel Rollins, are you even listening to me,” his mother asked, making his eyes gaze into hers as he shook his head. 

“Sweetie.. why wouldn’t you come to me? I almost lost you once,” she teared up as she gently cleaned the cuts on her sons legs.

Seth couldn’t help but start to cry. He hurt his mother. Again. The strong woman that raised him. The person that loved him unconditionally. The one who never judged him, or treated him any different when he came out as gay. She was there for Seth through everything you’d ever imagine, and he hurt her.

“I’m sorry mama,” he cried softly, wincing a bit as his cuts were wrapped up.

“Then tell what’s wrong Seth. You haven’t been the same since we came home Friday night.. Did Dean hurt you?” 

“N-no.. not n-necessarily,” he shook his head as the tears rolled down his cheeks.

“What do you mean by that?” she questioned as she moved to lay beside him. 

“Dean uh.. he uh kind of.. kissed m-me,” Seth said softly, feeling his mother tense up a bit beside him.

“I swear to god if he tried to hurt you,” Seth quickly cut his mother.

“No no, mom it wasn’t like that..”

“Then what was it like Seth? You’re telling me all he did was kiss you and it was enough to make you freak out and hurt yourself like this?” She asked and Seth nodded a little.

“I wanted to kiss him too mama.. I liked it.. Before I realized what I was actually doing, I kissed him back. He wasn’t trying to take advantage of me, it was just a little kiss,” he tried to explain. “But I guess I just got scared. I’ve never been in love before, but I felt something when I kissed Dean. And it’s scary mama.”

“Oh sweetie,” he watched as her expression softened. “Love is a wonderful thing, but you’re right. It is scary for those who don’t know what it feels like, and even more so for you baby. Especially with what you went through.”

Seth sniffled as he curled up against his mother’s side. He knew she was right.

“But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try darling. Dean’s a good boy. I like him and so does Brandon,” he heard her speak as she gently ran her hands through his dark curls. “You have a good heart, I know you’ll do the right thing.”

“What if he looks at me differently after I tell him?”

“Then he’s not the one for you baby. If he really likes you, he’ll make it work and accept you for you. Flaws and all bubba,” she kissed his forehead. “But you have to promise me that you won’t hurt yourself anymore.”

“I promise,” he whispered, true to his word. He really did want to try to get better if not for himself, then his mother. 

“Good.. because I wouldn’t be the woman I am without my babies. Especially you,” she whispered as she kissed his head, finally feeling him start to relax.

“Mm I love you,” Seth smiled sleepily against her shoulder.

“I love you too sweetie,” she whispered as he shut his eyes. “Get some sleep..”

He was nowhere near at peace, but at least his mom could help ease a little bit of his fears. His next mission was to try to talk to Dean, but for now he was ready to fall asleep feeling warm and safe next to his mom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one got kind of long but I hope you guys enjoy it nonetheless. Also, thank you guys for 1000+ reads!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth gets a bit of advice from a new source before he comes clean to Dean about his past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Slight trigger warning here.  
> If uncomfortable, don’t read.  
> Otherwise, enjoy :)

Seth hadn’t talked to Dean in five days and it was progressively eating away at him. Brandon had talked to Dean on Monday as promised, but it wasn’t anything other than their normal conversation. Dean wanted to know how Seth was, had even tried bringing the younger boy up, but Brandon dismissed him. It was Seth’s story to tell after all.

When Tuesday rolled around, things felt different. As he walked down the hall that morning, he noticed kids huddled together, whispering amongst themselves. A few pairs of eyes glanced his way, almost as if they were talking about him. 

When Dean finally found out what all the hubbub was about, he just about lost it. He had caught up Roman and Brandon as they stared at Roman’s phone, a picture on the screen. 

“What the fuck is this?,” Dean all but screeched as he tore the phone out of his older brother’s hand. 

His blue eyes stared at the picture in front of him as his heart ached in his chest. There was Seth down on his knees in what looked like to be the boy’s locker room. Tears were streaming down his cheeks as he tried to hide his face. What really caught Dean’s attention though, were the fresh angry red cuts scattered along the both of the kid’s thighs. 

“Who the fuck did this?” Dean’s voice broke, looking between the two other boys.

“We don’t know,” Roman said lightly.

“But I know when I find out who did, there’s gonna be hell to pay,” Brandon spoke through gritted teeth. “No one hurts my brother and fucking gets away with it.”

Seeing that picture put Dean in a mood for almost the rest of the week. He was pissed. He was SO fucking pissed that someone would go to this kind of low to hurt another person, especially one like Seth. He was also worried. The cuts had looked horrible in the picture, he could only imagine what they looked like in person. 

Seth hadn’t been in school since Monday, which Dean had been informed that that was when the picture had been taken. Roman filled him in on how he took Seth to guidance and they let the boy go home. According to Brandon, Seth had been perfectly okay at home, happy to be spending the one on one time with his mother again. That and no one had informed the boy that his picture had spread like wildfire across the entire school.

It eased Dean’s mind a little, but not much. He wanted to make the assumption for himself if Seth was truly okay or not. Above all, he just wanted to see him. His wish had came sooner than expected.

Thursday morning while he was digging around the pile of papers in his locker, Seth, accompanied by Brandon, appeared beside him.

“H-hey,” Seth said softly, causing Dean to jump, hitting his head off the top of his locker in surprise. 

“Shit Seth.. you scared me,” Dean let out a breath in disbelief as he gently rubbed at his head. 

“I’m sorry about that,” Seth let out a tense chuckle as his eyes looked at anything other than Dean. “But um, I’m sorry about Friday.. I was wondering if maybe we could talk.. like after school or something. I have some stuff I have to tell you..”

“You aren’t the one that should be apologizing Seth, it was all on me. But yeah, we can talk after school if you’re up for it,” Dean nodded in agreement, frowning at the tenseness in the smaller male.

“Oh okay.. uh awesome.. I guess I’ll catch you later then,” Seth cracked a slight but uneasy smile before disappearing back down the hall, leaving Brandon behind.

“He can tell something’s not right,” Brandon said, worry evident in his tone. “Everyone keeps looking at him and he doesn’t know why. The truth is going to come out sooner or later and I’m afraid it’s gonna send him straight over the edge for real this time Dean.”

“Have you told your mom about it?” Dean asked, nervously drumming his fingertips against his collarbone.

Brandon shook his head. “He’s been so far up my moms ass that I couldn’t tell her without him hearing.”

Dean chewed at his bottom lip nervously as he pondered the situation at hand. 

“we have to tell him Brandon,” he stared straight into Brandon’s dark eyes. 

“What?! He’s gonna freak out..”

“Well do you have any better ideas? Either he finds out from someone else and loses it in school again, or we can tell him at your place, where he can lose it in private.”

A small sigh left Brandon’s lips. “I guess you have a point.. but if we’re going with that, we have to tell him quick before he finds out himself.”

Dean nodded. “Tonight then. I’ll just come over to your place to talk to Seth and then we can tell him.”

“Sounds like a plan man. See ya tonight,” Brandon said, giving Dean’s shoulder a quick pat before heading off down the hall.

Dean knew that tonight was most likely going to be a shit show, so he had to try and do his best to prepare. Nothing however, could prepare him for what Seth was going to tell him.

*****************************************

Despite everything that had transpired on Monday, Seth had a peaceful two days off from school. In that time, he had gotten to spend some quality time with his mom. She had taken him shopping and to get his hair trimmed a tiny bit at the barber shop. It helped him clear the ever present storm in his mind. 

In the time he was off, his mom had also found him a new specialist to go to. Not that there was anything wrong with his old one, but his mother still thought it best to switch him. Little did he know that his new doctor had been in a position very very similar to his own.

Doctor Balor,(who had insisted that they called him Finn), was also a victim of sexual assault. He didn’t go into great detail about how it had happened. All he had said was that a close family member had taken advantage of him a few times over the course of his late childhood/ early teen years. Seth hated knowing that these things happened to other people, but it also made things a bit easier knowing that Finn understood what it was like. 

So for the first time in a long time, he wasn’t dreading going to see his therapist. When his mom picked him up from school, he hopped in the car and was ready to go. He had a lot to tell Finn about, especially since he was going to finally tell Dean his truth tonight. 

Once they got to the office, Seth said goodbye to his mother before Finn took him back to his office. 

“So Seth,” the doctor started, his Irish accent thick as he took a seat. “Where did we leave off?”

Seth took a seat across from Finn as the older male flipped through his black journal. He made himself comfortable before he decided to speak again.

“I think we ended last session with me telling you my whole story,” Seth thought back before answering.

“Oh yes, that’s right. And you also told me about a boy named Dean and how he triggered you when he kissed you,” Finn spoke as his iced blue eyes skimmed the the notes in the book in front of him.

“Yes..,” Seth bit his lip lightly.

“Could you go into detail for me? How did you feel when he kissed you?” The sound of a pen click rang out as Finn’s hand prepared itself to write.

“Well, I can’t say that I hadn’t thought about kissing Dean at some point, because I did. It just came a little sooner than expected.. That and I didn’t think he’d be interested in someone like me at all..,” Seth started to explain.

“What makes you say that?” He felt Finn’s eyes on him as he fidgeted with his hands.

“Well I don’t know, I always kind of thought he could do better, you know? He could have the best looking guy out there if he wanted. It feels weird that he wants me.. I don’t really consider myself the best looking either. When he kissed me, I liked it. But with everything I’ve been through, it just caught up to me and I reacted the wrong way.”

Seth watched as the Irishman wrote something down before setting his journal down completely. His eyes met Seth’s for a moment before the next question was asked.

“Do you think you’d do it again?”

Seth chewed at his lip as he pondered how to answer the question. Of course, he’d love to kiss Dean again, but the fear was still there. Besides, he didn’t even know if Dean would want to stay after he tell him the truth.. so instead he decided to just nod.

“I would, but um, I think I’d be afraid to,” he responded, his voice sounding smaller than it had before.

“Why’s that?”

“Mainly because of what happened the first time.. I don’t want to have another episode and scare him, you know? That and I still haven’t told him about what happened to me. I’m afraid he wouldn’t want to after he finds out.”

His chocolate brown eyes looked around at anything other than Finn as he waited for a response.

“Well not everyone is going to take it well,” he started, his voice gentle. “Not everyone will be willing to accept that that kind of thing happened to you and be patient with you through your recovery. But it is important that you try. When I first met my boyfriend of five years, I felt the same as you. I didn’t want to tell him about me or what had happened to me. I felt incapable of receiving his love and attention. But one night when we finally had that conversation and it was all out in the open, it felt like a weight was lifted off my chest even if I was scared of him rejecting me. That rejection never came though. He didn’t understand how bad it had messed me up, but he was willing to help me try to recover from some of it. It’s not going to be easy Seth, but if Dean cares enough and is willing to help you, you have to at least let him try.”

Seth stared at the desk, carefully trying to process the man’s words. 

“I guess you’re right,” he replied softly. “If Dean cares, he won’t leave me.”

For the first time since the events of Friday night, Seth had allowed himself to crack a genuine smile. He had faith in Dean, and he was slowly learning to have more faith in himself.

*****************************************

Dean was surprised when Seth’s mother picked them up after school. Well, it had started to become a normal thing, but the part that actually surprised him was that the other boy wasn’t in the passenger seat. He quirked an eyebrow at Brandon in curiosity before they climbed in, Brandon up front and Dean in the back.

“You’ll see,” Brandon replied, as if he had read Dean’s mind completely. 

He nodded a little, blue eyes gazing out the window in curiosity. The light chatter of the pair up front was tuned out by Dean, watching as the building of town came into sight. What were they doing down here? He didn’t really think Seth would want to be downtown alone..

The confusion didn’t settle however, once they pulled up in front of a therapists office. Seth waited patiently on the gray bench outside the door. He saw a therapist? Is that where he always went after school? 

There were a million things he’d love to ask Seth as he climbed in the car, but he didn’t allow himself to. He didn’t want to hurt Seth any further than he had the other night. 

 

“Hey..,” the soft voice brought Dean out of his thoughts and back to the boy beside him.

“Hey,” a small smile crept onto his unshaven face.

They didn’t talk a lot during the ride back to Seth’s place, but Dean didn’t feel the need to talk. He was content sitting in the silence of the car with him and his family.

“Alright boys, dinner should be done in about an hour or so,” Mrs. Rollins announced once they pulled into the driveway. 

They all mumbled some sort of response before heading inside and up towards Seth’s bedroom. Before the three boys were inside the room, Seth turned to face them, chewing at his lip.

“Brandon, would you mind maybe staying out here? I.. I kinda want to talk to Dean privately,” Seth rubbed at his arm anxiously.

“Of course little brother.. I’ll be right in my room if you need me,” Dean watched as Brandon’s brown eyes flashed to his own blue ones before he retreated into the room to his left.

Dean’s gaze fell back on Seth as he glanced up at him. 

“Um, go ahead and make yourself comfortable..,” Seth let Dean in the room before shutting the door behind them.

Much like the last time they had a serious talk, Seth took the seat at his desk. Dean sat on the edge of Seth’s bed, hands in his lap as he prepared himself to listen. He was ready to know. 

“Well, I guess it’s better to start at the very beginning, that way you know everything,” Seth started, his voice soft and eyes on anything but Dean.

“Brandon and I.. well you probably already know we’re new to the school. We used to live in Iowa, which is a pretty far move, but once I get to a part of this story, you’ll hopefully understand why the move was necessary...”

Dean watched on, his curiosity peaking as his focus was solely set on Seth.

“I wasn’t always scared of everything. At my old school, I used to play basketball and Brandon played football, like he does now. I wasn’t just a kid trying to hide in my hoodie, trying to avoid the world around them. I had friends that I hung out with, went to parties with, you name it. But things changed.”

Dean frowned at the tears that were already falling down Seth’s cheeks. He desperately wanted to comfort him, just like he had done for him a few weeks prior. 

“For the longest time, I had always know I was different from the other boys. Physically, I was less muscular, shorter and all around just smaller than the others. Mentally, I started to notice other things. While they’d all be busy talking about the girls they were with or hooked up with, I was never really invested in the conversation. Sure I had a few girlfriends, but they weren’t ever exclusive. I.. I never had sex with any of them, let alone even kiss them. I just never had the desire to..,” he trailed off, staying quiet for a moment.

“One day, I stayed after school, waiting for Brandon to finish up football practice when I first noticed it. There was a boy on his team, the quarterback specifically. His name was Jason..”

Dean frowned as Seth physically flinched from saying the dudes name. He had wanted to ask why, but he stayed quiet.

“H-he was handsome to say the least. Bright green eyes, blonde hair, a jaw chiseled to perfection..” Seth took another deep breath.

“I started to notice little things at first. I’d stare at him for a little longer than I should. I’d always make sure I was home whenever he came over with Brandon. And the butterflies in my stomach were a dead giveaway. I had a crush on him. I felt like how the other guys felt about girls, about this boy.” Seth visibly tensed.

“Seth..,” Dean said softly, making Seth shake his head.

“I have to.. you deserve to know,” the boy whispered, taking in another few lungfuls of air before lifting his gaze to Dean’s. Before Dean could object, Seth continued.

“I told my parents right away how I felt. My mom and Brandon both understood and supported me, but my dad didn’t want to believe it. He didn’t want to have a “fag for a son.” But anyways, I should’ve known something was off when Jason started talking to me. I mean, yeah I played sports and stuff and people talked to me, but i was nowhere near being popular. Let alone someone he’d be friends with.”

Seth stood up to pace the room, needing another distraction as he tried to continue.

“He invited me over to his house. I stupidly went over, my feelings getting in the way of my senses.. I.. I remember no one else being there. He said his parents were gone for the weekend, and his sister was staying with her friends for the night. Another red flag that I should’ve seen. When he offered me a drink, I took it, not wanting to look like a loser. Even if the whiskey burned my throat on the way down. I had drank beer before, but I had never been drunk. So it caught me off guard when the whiskey had hit me. I felt like I was in a haze..”

Dean had had enough of watching Seth stalk around like he was going to break down at any second. He knew the risk he was taking when he reached out and pulled Seth down into his lap by his arm. 

“Relax Seth, I got you,” he whispered, rubbing at the smaller boy’s back as he shook in his arms. 

Seth relaxed slightly, leaning his head against Dean’s shoulder. “H-he kissed me.. a-and I kissed him back. B-but he wanted to go further, and I w-was scared, even if I was intoxicated. I knew I didn’t want my first time to be like that. S-so I told him that.” Seth let out a soft sob as his hot tears wet Dean’s shirt.

“B-but he didn’t stop. He pulled my shirt off, even while I tried to fight him. He just flipped me over and pinned me down. I.. I can’t explain how h-helpless I felt. I t-tried to struggle, tried to get him off of me. B-but I wasn’t strong enough. H-he raped me, right there on his parents couch. I was a mess after it happened.. I felt so dirty and disgusting and.. and just used. I didn’t want to feel like that, s-so I tried to kill myself when I was in the shower that night.. but thankfully my mom found me and they rushed me to the hospital for the start of my extended stay.”

Dean’s grip on Seth became protective, almost on instinct as he let his thoughts run wild. How could anyone ever want to hurt any other person like that, let alone hurt Seth like that? Sweet, innocent, never done anything to anyone, Seth. It made Dean’s heart ache and his eyes water. If he ever got his hands on the son of a bitch who did this..

“D-dean,” the weak voice pleaded, breaking Dean from his thoughts.

“Yeah buddy?” he asked gently, blue eyes meeting sad browns.

“Don’t leave me,” He sniffled, clinging to his shirt. 

“I never planned on it Seth.. I’m so sorry that happened to you. I swear if I ever see that kid, he’s getting the beating of a lifetime,” Dean held Seth closer, rubbing his back.

“Oh you don’t have to worry, Brandon beat the shit out of him at school the next day,” Seth sniffled, wiping his eyes with the sleeve of his shirt.

“You bet your ass I did,” a voice rang out from the doorway, startling both the boys. 

“Brandon, I..,” Seth started but his brother held up his hand.

“I know how you get when you talk about it.. I wanted to make sure you were okay,” he explained, taking the seat next to Dean.

Seth cracked a tiny smile up at his older brother as he ruffled his hair. All the tension had completely eased out of him, leaving him calm and comfortable in Dean’s hold. He knew, deep down, that telling Dean his past wouldn’t affect the way that the boy felt about him. And he was starting to learn that he was right. Sure things weren’t going to fall into place right away, and he certainly knew he had things he still had to explain to Dean, but for now, everything was okay. He had the best form of support around. And that’s all Seth had ever wanted.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this got sort of long, so I’m going to try and split it into two different chapters. So here’s the first half. Enjoy :)  
> Oh and ps.  
> lots of feedback is always appreciated


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Trouble at school brings out a new side of Seth that surprises everyone.

A lot was running through Dean’s mind the next morning at school, but for Seth’s sake, he held it in. Despite pouring his entire heart out for Dean last night, the auburn haired boy couldn’t help but be curious about the things that Seth left out, such as their kiss. He knew the topic needed to be addressed at some point, but he figured he’d let Seth approach that subject when he felt comfortable enough.

Speaking of Seth, you wouldn’t have ever known that he was the same boy shaking and crying out of pure fear in Dean’s arms last night. Today, he wore a bright smile on his face as he playfully argued with Dean over who the best slasher movie villain was. His strength truly impressed Dean. 

“It’s most definitely Jason, I mean, have you seen that guy?” Seth exclaimed as he hung his backpack up in his locker. 

Dean couldn’t help the fond smile he gave the younger boy in that moment.

“You’re getting it wrong Seth, Freddy Krueger is way better than that dumb oaf Jason,” Dean teased, awaiting Seth’s reaction.

“How dare you!,” Seth scoffed, pretending to be offended. “Jason could kick Freddy’s ass!”

“Oh yeah, that’s why Freddy was still alive at the end of Freddy Vs Jason,” Dean pointed out, making Seth grumble.

“It’s not that I don’t like Freddy, it’s just the fact that Jason is way better. Plus he has more movies,” Dean watched as Seth dug his books and binders out of his backpack.

“The amount of movies doesn’t have anything to do with it my friend. It’s the fact that Freddy is actually fucking hilarious. That and he made his own weapon instead of Jason’s simple little machete,” Dean smirked proudly as Seth thought about it.

“I guess you do have a point,” Seth playfully elbowed Dean. “But I still like Jason better.”

“And that’s fine with me,” Dean smiled softly as Seth shut his locker, coming face to face with Nick.

Dean’s smile fell at the first sign of discomfort from Seth. He could tell by the smirk on Nick’s face that he wasn’t here to be nice. 

The thought finally hit Dean as Nick pulled his phone out, the very picture he and Brandon were to warm Seth about on the screen.

“Speaking of Freddy Krueger, were you guys fucking or something?” The smirk on Nick’s face was enough to flare up Dean’s temper as he showed Seth the picture.

“Listen here assh-,” a gentle hand against Dean’s chest made him freeze, looking down at Seth, who was surprisingly calm.

“I got this,” he whispered before turning back to Nick.

Dean was about to argue, but what he really wasn’t expecting was for Seth to land a fist right into Nick’s stupid smirking face. His books fell to the floor with a bang, turning the heads of all the other students gathered in the hall. It was as if time stood still there for a solid 45 seconds as Nick glared at Seth, who was glaring in return, his fists clenched tightly. 

“I’m sick and fucking tired of you picking on me Nick. I have never EVER done anything wrong, I never once talked bad about you or any of your stupid groupies, yet you stand here, showing off that picture like it’s some kind of fucking prize,” Seth yelled, making everyone go silent in anticipation of a fight. “Is mental health just a fucking joke to you?”

“Anyone who hangs around that dog of yours is bound to be picked on. Especially when they’re little scrawny bitches like you,” Nick spat in Seth’s direction. “Oh and don’t worry, I forwarded that picture to everyone in this stupid school. They all know just how pathetic you really are.”

Before Dean could get a proper hold on Seth, he was flinging himself at the blonde. The roar of the forming crowd around them was deafening as Dean tried to pry Seth off of Nick. When he finally got ahold of Seth, he pulled him back, only to be pushed backwards, landing flat on his ass.

He watched on in fear for Seth’s safety as he watched both boys exchange punch after punch at each other. Dean had never expected something like this to come out of Seth. Sweet, calm, shy Seth was currently giving Nick a hearty ass whooping right in front of Dean’s eyes. He didn’t know exactly how to react.

Before long, a few teachers rushed onto the scene, desperately trying to pull the two boys apart. Dean watched on, still frozen in place. He had no idea Brandon or Roman was there until he heard the older Rollins brother speak up.

“What the fuck happened?!,” Brandon asked, worry in his voice as he and Roman hauled Dean back onto his feet.

“He beat the shit out of him,” Dean mumbled, eyes glued to a still very pissed looking Seth. 

“Why I oughta beat the shit out of Nick-,” Dean cut Brandon off.

“No Brandon, SETH beat the shit out of him,” he explained, wide blue eyes meeting brown ones. 

“Oh shit.. we forgot to tell him about the picture, didn’t we?” Brandon asked and Dean nodded weakly.

“Nick said some fucked up stuff and Seth literally went after him.. I would’ve never expected anything like that from him,” Dean said, looking on as two teachers hauled each boy down the hall towards the office. 

“God I hope he’s okay,” Brandon mumbles as he bit his lip, watching as his brother went down the hall as well.

“Should we go see him?”

“You think it’s a good idea?”

Dean shrugged. He knew it probably wasn’t the best idea, but if anything he could say he was a witness to what had happened. With Brandon being Seth’s brother, maybe that had a shot of trying to get in to see Seth. 

“I think it’s worth a shot,” Dean replied.

And that’s how they wound up in the principals office as well. Dean, just like he had predicted, had been called in as a witness to the fight, having been seen with Seth right before the first punch was thrown. Brandon was just there for moral support for Seth, who twenty minutes ago was beating the shit out of his bully, and was now shaking like a leaf in his chair. 

Dean hadn’t got to see him until after he told the whole truth to the principal. By the time he was done, he was feeling slightly eager to be able to get a good look at Seth. A part of him wished more than anything that he walked away from that fight without looking like a punching bag, but once he got a look at the poor boy’s face that thought left his mind. 

“Ah shit Seth,” he mumbled, taking up the free seat on the other side of him.

Seth didn’t give much of a response at all, just a little whimper. Dean took a moment to take it all in, from the busted lip to the little things such as the various bruises scattered upon his face. He looked like he took a beating, which in truth, he did. Nick was a hell of a fighter, proved it when he dared to fight Roman. Even his huge Samoan best friend walked away from that fight with some significant injuries, nothing like Seth’s though. 

“They’re suspending him until next Thursday. Him and Nick both,” Brandon informed him, voice going bitter at the mention of the bleached blonde. “My mom’s on her way to get him now.”

“I don’t see how that’s any fair, Nick should be fucking expelled for exploiting Seth to the whole damn school,” Dean said, feeling slightly irritated as he watched Seth’s body shake.

“I know, I know,” Brandon sighed. “I’ll talk to my mom and see what she can do. Knowing Nick, he’s going to try and blame someone else. That ain’t happening this time. Like I said before, no one messes with my brother and gets away with it, nobody.” 

Dean sighed a little, deciding to let the matter go for now. He figured talking about it made Seth feel worse, so he tore himself away from the conversation, settling on watching him instead. 

As far as Dean knew, this fight was far from over.

*****************************************

Things had been a blur for Seth since his mother picked him up from the school. He didn’t really remember much after that to be honest. His mind was pretty much void of anything, which was odd considering his thoughts were overbearing, even on a good day.

The sting from his mom cleaning his lip was what brought to it, yelping slightly. He knew she was being as gentle as she could, but god damn, it hurt like a bitch.

“Seth, honey, please sit still and let me clean you up,” his mom said gently as Seth began to squirm.

“No mama, hurts..,” he whimpered lightly.

“Just give me a few seconds, please?,” she sighed softly, taking a step back to get a good look at her youngest son. “You’re face looks awful baby.”

Seth mumbled a response as he crossed his arms. As much as he loved his mother, he hated how brutally honest she could be at times. 

“Wanna go to bed,” Seth mumbled, standing up from his chair. 

“Well I’m coming with you then. You still need to give me the full story. You’re brother was going on about trying to get this boy expelled?,” she followed him as he limped up to his room. “And for you to actually physically fight him? He must’ve said some really hurtful things..”

“Hurtful things? Mom he sent around a picture of me in my boxers to the whole school!,” Seth snapped as he flung himself down, face first onto his bed. “He took it that day I came home from school early. When the school told you about my cuts. What kind of asshole does that to someone?”

Seth finally broke down fully, tears streaming down his face as his mom swooped in, wrapping him up in her arms, completely ignoring his choice of words.

“Only ones who don’t realize how much other people are hurting,” she said as she smoothed his hair back, out of his face.

“I never did anything wrong though mama, all he said was that I was bound to get picked on for hanging around with Dean,” Seth sobbed, his swollen eye throbbing. “He asked me if I was fucking Freddy Krueger when he showed me the picture.”

His mother frowned even more as she heard his voice break. Now she understood why Brandon was upset. This kid exposed her son in the worst way to the entire school. All he had gotten was a suspension, just like Seth had. She completely seen the injustice in that now, and she was determined to do something about it. For now though, she settled on taking care of her baby, he needed her. 

“I’m gonna fix this, okay? Don’t you worry about it Seth,” she whispered, kissing his head. 

Seth was satisfied with her answer for now. He knew she’d try her best for him. It didn’t ease his curious mind however. 

“Mama?,” he sniffled, peeking up at his mother.

“Yeah bubba?”

“Are you mad that I beat him up?”he asked shyly, nervously awaiting his mom’s response.

“To be honest Seth, I’m not. He hurt you in the worst way, and I’m glad you stuck up for yourself. I also hope you got him good,” she smiled brightly, bringing a slight smile onto his own face. 

The statement itself was enough to help him relax a little. Even though all his worries were still ever present in his mind, he knew he had the best support team to help him through anything. 

He didn’t know how long his mother had laid with him, but he had guessed he had dozed off somewhere during that time. A little around 2:30, he was woken up by a shaken up Brandon, along with Dean, that barged into his room. Their mom had tried to hush them, but he sat up a little, alerting her that he, in fact, had already been woken up. With a little coaxing, they managed to get her to go start their dinner, Brandon and Dean both promising to keep an eye on Seth. 

“The whole school was going crazy!,” Brandon exclaimed. “They’re on your side little bro! They think Nick deserves to be expelled.”

“Mom said she was gonna talk to the school.. do you really think we can do this,” Seth asked, the uncertainty evident in his voice. 

“Oh I know we can. The only people that weren’t rooting for you were Nick’s bitches. We can do this Seth, right Dean?” Brandon said, making Dean nod in agreement.

“I stand for justice, and what the school did was a shitty form of it,” the auburn haired boy added. 

“Hell yeah,” Brandon smiled excitedly. “I’m gonna go call Roman and see what our first plan of action is. You boys gonna be okay while I’m gone?”

Seth and Dean nodded simultaneously, making Brandon chuckle, making them promise to “behave” before he took his leave. 

Curious brown eyes gazed up into bright blues as Dean took a seat on the edge of Seth’s bed. 

“How’re you feeling?” Dean asked softly.

“To be honest? Like shit,” Seth let out a chuckle.

Dean smiled softly, eyes gazing down at the floor. “It sure looked like it.”

Both boys had once again been succumbed into silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. Since Seth had come clean to Dean last night, he was slowly starting to feel even more comfortable around the older boy. 

“But um, can I ask you something?,” Dean asked shyly, eyes solely focused on the fingers that picked at his jacket.

“Shoot..,” Seth spoke softly.

“You didn’t mention anything about our kiss last night.. I mean, I understand just why you reacted the way you did now, but a little part of me is still curious to know if you at least liked it,” Dean spoke, almost shyly as he addressed his concern.

Seth’s heartbeat picked back up as he contemplated how to answer Dean’s question. The simple answer would’ve been yes, but his mind was a complicated place. So he decided to go with what his heart thought. 

“Well Dean, I’m going to be very honest with you, okay?” Seth asked as Dean nodded. He noted the slight change in Dean’s face as he said that.

“When you first kissed me, I had wanted it more than anything. But I gave in to my insecurities instead of giving in to what I had actually wanted, which is kinda why I panicked,” he scratched the back of his ear, just as he had always done when he was nervous. 

“S-so you did like it?” Dean asked, slowly meeting Seth’s eyes.

“Yeah.. from what I actually remember, I did,” Seth said, feeling his cheeks heat up as he prepared to say his next words. “I uh.. I actually wouldn’t mind trying again..”

The look Dean have him, made Seth burst into a little fit of giggles. “You mean it?”

Seth nodded as he sat up. “Yeah..”

He bit his bottom lip as he glanced at Dean. It felt like forever since he had first started to dance around the attraction that he had for the other male. He was tired of being afraid, he wanted to follow his heart for once. So he took his shot.

A small smile made its way onto Seth’s face as he slowly leaned in, pressing his lips to Dean’s gently while being conscious of his own busted lip. He held the kiss for a few seconds before slowly pulling away.

All his fears were pushed to the side for this kiss. Instead of anxiety, he felt something else bloom in his chest. A part of him swore that it was those “sparks” that everyone talked about.

“That was nice,” Dean whispered, breaking the silence. 

“Yeah.. it was,” Seth smiled, blushing once again.

And it truly was. Even if today had been a shitty day, with him getting suspended, it still turned out fairly well. He finally got to kiss a boy, an attractive boy at that, and not be afraid. He couldn’t wait to tell Finn about his progress when he seen the Irishman on Monday. But for now, he was pushing thoughts aside, solely wanting to focus on Dean.

And maybe kiss him some more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So hey! Lemme know what you guys think! Especially about Seth’s actions in this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it :)
> 
>  
> 
> Oh and feedback is very very appreciated


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean has a run in with some of his old demons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There’s a bit of violence in this chapter. If it’s triggering in any way, please do not read.

The atmosphere of the next few days after the fight had felt completely different to Dean. Going to school had been a bit easier, as he and all the other kids, didn’t have the threat of Nick Nemeth hanging over their heads. Even Nikki, Brie, and Bryan mainly kept to themselves, also managing to avoid trouble, which was a surprise to everyone. Despite the obvious changes in the school, there was one thing Dean did miss, and that was Seth.

Dean wouldn’t lie to anyone when he said that Seth was his main reason for staying in school. If the younger male hadn’t have came, Dean would’ve dropped out by now. He would’ve packed up his few belongings and hit the road. For Roman’s sake, he wouldn’t go too far, not wanting to be apart from the only person, before Seth and his family, to give a damn about him. 

Dean let out a sigh as he walked into the boy’s bathroom. As much as he’d love to say that everything about his life had been getting better, he couldn’t. His mom had found yet another man while she was out “doing business”, as she had called it. She found a real winner in her newest guy.

The dudes personality was just as scary as his background as an ex-convict. He stood at least a few inches taller than Dean, with biceps that put a body builder to shame. He looked like a biker in some sense, just harsher looking. Within the first hour and a half of him being in the house, Dean had already decided that the guy never smiled. And he did find it to be true. Unless you counted his shit eating grin as a smile, of course.

So Dean had made the decision to try and stay away from his house as much as he possibly could. Which with his new found friends, he was able to stay out most of the night. Those nights already passed way too fast though, and before long he found himself sneaking into his own home, hoping to avoid both his mom and “Convict”. Last night, he hadn’t been too lucky. 

As he snuck into through the pitch black kitchen last night, Dean had been unaware of the empty glass beer bottle sat on the kitchen counter. As his shaky hands tried to maneuver him through the dark, he had accidentally knocked it over, causing it to shatter all over the floor at his feet. Immediately, he tensed as his scared blue eyes glanced towards the light in the living room. 

The growl had been unmistakable, and it had Dean frozen in place out of pure fear. In the past, he may have opened his mouth to test some of the other boyfriends, but he really didn’t want to get involved with this one. He was almost positive that Convict could snap him in half without much of a struggle at all. 

As much as Dean had wanted to run, he didn’t dare as Convict made his way into the room. His cold grey eyes met Dean’s as the light was flicked on. 

“Where the fuck have you been boy?,” he spoke, voice as rough as gravel.

“J-just out with my f-friends,” he replied, hating how weak he sounded. 

The laugh that erupted out of the man’s chest had caught Dean off guard. “Friends? I doubt you have any of those. I bet you were really out with your boyfriend. Everything about you screams fag.” He grit his teeth as he uttered the last word.

He didn’t dare respond, so his mouth kind of just hung open like he had wanted to say something. The thoughts in his mind were running too wild for him to even consider speaking. He would’ve lost himself in his head, if it weren’t for the distinct clicks of a belt being undone. 

Dean tensed up all over again as his eyes met the belt Convict now held in his hands.

“As long as I’m around, I won’t put up with no gay boys in this house. So it looks like I’ll have to beat it out of you,” he muttered as he folded the belt in half.

Before Dean could protest, or really say anything in general, he felt the sting of the leather against his shoulder. A cry left his lips as he instinctively flinched away from the man, which turned out to be a mistake as he struck him again. And again. And again. 

After the third strike of the belt, Dean sunk down to his knees, and right into the glass. It didn’t hurt as bad as his back did. It felt as it were on fire, as welt after welt was added to the collection. 

His screams of pure agony must’ve alerted the family on the other side of the house as the sound of police sirens filled Dean’s ears. The abuse had stopped shortly after the sirens were heard as Convict noticeably tensed and started to panic. His mothers cries were added to the mix of confusion not long after that. 

Dazed blue eyes met the same shade of blue, red rimmed eyes as his mother stared down at him. He could swear she was talking to him, but he couldn’t hear her over the sound of the ringing in his ears. Not long after, he found himself falling into complete darkness.

When he got up the next morning, the first thing he had noticed was that he was laying on the couch. His mom had been hovering over him with worried eyes. 

“Oh Dean, sweetie,” she cooed as he regained his consciousness.

As she reached out to tuck a curl behind his ear, he flinched away. He didn’t want her sympathy. She’d be back with another guy by tomorrow morning. Nothing would EVER change, and Dean wasn’t going to stick around any longer. 

“ ‘m not your sweetie,” he mumbled as he forced himself to sit up, enflaming his wounds.

“Dean.. don’t be like that sweetie,” she spoke softly, once again trying to touch him.

“I have every right.. i know for a fact that you don’t fucking care. If you did you would’ve gotten clean the first time this shit happened.. but no mom. Here we are ten years later with the same issues that you just ignore! Your boyfriend beat me with his belt last night. The previous one choked me out. How much more of this until they actually do kill me mom? And then your ass would be locked in a jail cell,” he spat, standing up, despite the pain. 

“Dean Ambrose, I’m your mother.. and I love you,” she pleaded with him as he limped back to his room. 

“The fuck you do,” he mumbled as he pulled a bag out, packing his belongings into it. 

“Please Dean.. you’re all I have left,” she was sobbing now, thinking that her tears were going to change Dean’s mind. 

“Yeah? And now you have nothing. I’m done living here. You turn a blind eye to me unless it’s convenient to you, and I’m done being hurt because of your stupidity. So please, don’t come looking for me. Forget my name, and the fact that I ever fucking existed,” he stared daggers into her eyes as she sobbed louder. 

“But I’m your mother..”

“My mother died when you took that first hit when I was six,” Dean called over his shoulder before turning for the door. 

That’s what led him to where he was now. In the boy’s bathroom, locked in the handicapped stall. The sting of his shirt sticking to his welts was beginning to be a bit unbearable, along with having to sit back against the chairs in class. 

A part of him wished Seth were here. He missed the boy incredibly, despite getting to see him the night before. But then again, he would’ve hated for Seth to see him in this shape. He was weak, incredibly sore, and still in the same bloody clothes from the night before (which he managed to cover most of it up with his hoodie). 

The thought of getting help didn’t occur to him in the slightest. He wanted to hide the fact that any of this had happened. There was no need for anyone else, besides maybe Roman, to know that this had happened. 

His bloody shirt had slowly been discarded after proving to be a hassle. The fabric had gotten into his welts and stuck there, causing them to bleed all over again once he pulled the shirt over his head to change it. What he wasn’t expecting however, was the amount of pain and blood that seeped out of his abused skin. 

The edges of his vision started to blur once again as he reached for the latch on the door. He managed to unlock the door before once again, he dissolved into complete darkness. 

*****************************************

Life during a suspension wasn’t as bad as people made it out to be. Seth had the luxury of sleeping in, spending the entire morning and some of the afternoon helping his mom around the house, catching up on his missed work, and his new favorite, getting to see Dean. 

Now that Seth had gotten past the mental barrier of kissing the older boy, his feelings about him were slowly starting to change. It was still early in their relationship? Seth wasn’t quite sure what to call it. They hadn’t really had that conversation just yet. 

It was the little things that he noticed about Dean that made his heart flutter. The dimples, the light blush that covered his cheeks when Seth flirted with him, the bright eyes, it was everything. There had only been one other male Seth’s had these sorts of feelings for, but yet his feelings for Dean were completely different.

Dean treated him with the utmost respect, always keeping things light when they’d kiss or just in general. He always held doors open for him, and even the other night he pulled his chair out at the dinner table. He had proven to be the perfect gentleman that Jason never was. Then again, Seth didn’t really get to get close to him before the older boy took advantage of him. 

Thoughts of Dean lingered in Seth’s mind as Brandon burst into his room. The younger brunette jumped in surprise, wide brown eyes landing on the disheveled form of his older brother. He could tell something was seriously wrong by the look he had on his face, and it scared Seth. 

What if something happened to Dean?

What if someone beat him up at school?

What if he got hit by a car on the way to school?

What if he-

“Seth, bud, you gotta focus,” Brandon pleaded with Seth, now standing directly in front of him. His hands gently gripped his shoulders as he stared straight into Seth’s eyes. 

“W-What’s wrong Brandon,” Seth asked nervously, not really ready for the answer.

“Promise you won’t freak out, okay?” Brandon bit his bottom lip, like he always did when he was about to give bad news.

“Spit it out already!”

“Okay okay..,” Brandon said, taking a deep breath. “They found Dean passed out in the school bathrooms today.. I guess Roman found him..”

Seth felt his anxiety spike at the mention of Dean’s name. “W-What? What happened?!”

“We don’t know exactly what happened, but it’s bad Seth.. there were fresh welts all over his back. Roman and I think he got them after he left here left night..”

Seth’s mind flashed back to last night. He and Dean had played Xbox for the most part of the night, in between sharing kisses. There had been no signs of him being in any kind of pain then, only what Seth could describe as happiness by how bright his smile had been. The thought of Dean in ANY kind of pain made Seth’s heart ache in a way he never expected. 

The tears started to leak from his eyes as Brandon slowly sat down beside him. Strong arms wrapped themselves around his waist as he buried his face into Brandon’s neck. 

“I- I don’t get it B-Brandon.. w-why would any parent let that happen to their kid? M-mama would never do that to us,” Seth spoke between sobs. 

“Some parents aren’t really meant to be parents bud, and sadly that’s the case with Dean’s mother,” Brandon said, gently running a hand through Seth’s bed head. 

“But it wasn’t always bad Bran.. at one point Dean said she used to be a good mom,” he sniffed.

“That’s just what drugs do to you I guess. You get mixed in with the wrong people and that’s what happens.. It just makes me sick to see our friend suffer through that. No one in the world deserves that, especially not Dean.”

Seth sniffled as he nuzzled closer into Brandon’s chest. As much as the physical comfort helped, it didn’t really do much to get rid or the ache in his heart. 

“He won’t have to go back there, will he?”

Brandon shrugged a little. “The school has every right to report it, and if they do, there’s the possibility Dean’s mom could lose her parental rights. Roman already said he’d talk to his mom, since she works with those kinds of cases. They might get Dean to stay with them..”

Seth let out a little breath of relief at that. He trusted Roman. He was the older brother that Dean never had the luxury to have. It made Seth feel better to know that there’d be a chance that Dean never had to go through anything like that again. Seth would personally fight anyone who dared to disagree. 

They were both quiet for awhile as Seth slowly got himself together. Once he did, Brandon ruffled his hair a bit in an attempt to gain his attention. 

“Mm what?” Seth mumbled, still a bit lost in his head. 

“I’m proud of you, you know.”

“For what?” Now Seth’s interest had been peaked as he stared at his brother.

“For everything. Last year at this time I had watched you slowly disappear inside your own head at the hospital. Now look at you.. you have friends, you’re going to school, and you’re in love. The Seth last year would’ve never fought his bullies, let alone get suspended. This is what I had always hoped for you since the incident and you’re finally making real progress, brother. And I’m so proud of you..”

Seth blushed at the “in love” part. “You really think so?”

“I know so..,” he smiled, patting Seth’s shoulder before getting to his feet. “Now hurry up and get ready.”

“For what?” Seth looked up at his brother with curious brown eyes. 

 

“We’re going to see Dean..”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys :) sorry for the wait.. I had this chapter started a different way, but ended up trashing it for this idea instead. Lemme know what you guys think!
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated always


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth has a run in with Dean’s mother, giving her a piece of his mind.

Seth hated hospitals. He always had since he was a little boy. The concept of strange people checking out your body with strange instruments had always managed to scare him when he was little. That fear never really left, he found that out when he was admitted last year. 

Things weren’t necessarily as scary being on the visiting end, at least not anymore. When Seth was little, his grandma had fallen ill with pneumonia. His mother used to bring him and Brandon fairly often to visit with her before she had passed. He had clearly remembered it feeling dark and ominous. The sound of what Seth had thought was death was all around him; wheezing, coughing, sputtering their very soul out of their body. 

Seth had grown out of that, just like he outgrew all of his toy cars and trucks. Today, his mind was focused on one person in particular as he made his way through the hall. His ears followed slowly, steady beep of the machines down the hall as Brandon led them to the room number that Roman had texted them.

As they neared the room, both boys picked up on two things in particular. The first was their Samoan friend, standing in front of the door almost in a blocking manner. His toned arms were crossed across his chest as his eyes focused straight ahead. The second thing that caught Seth’s attention was the woman a few feet away from Roman, arguing with the doctor. 

He peeked a confused glance up at his brother who shrugged at him. He was just as confused as Seth felt in that moment. As they inches closer, however, Seth started to listen in a little, picking up on parts of the conversation. 

“I have the rights to see him!,” the lady emphasized, trying to get past the doctor. 

“Ma’am, please calm down, you’re disturbing all the other patients,” the doctor tried to reason with her, only succeeding in irking her on further. 

“That’s MY son. I want to see him!”

Seth’s heart almost stopped as his eyes locked onto her once again. He knew he should’ve recognized the sandy colored curls and iced blue, yet red rimmed, eyes that the woman possessed. Dean possessed the same traits. It was Dean’s mother. 

The anger that laid dormant for the most part since the fight last week, threatened to reappear as he listened on. She didn’t deserve to see Dean after what she let him go through. What Seth thought she deserved was to be locked up for endangering her child. 

Before he spoke his mind though, a hand on his shoulder grounded him. He glanced over at Brandon as he calmed himself down for the time being. 

“What?” He let out a breath, turning his back to the woman to focus back in on the older boys around him. 

“Roman’s got some stuff to tell us before we go in and see him, okay?,” Brandon said lightly, in an attempt not to let the struggling woman behind them overhear. 

Seth nodded a little, turning his gaze up to the Samoan. 

“Okay, so I’m just going to forewarn you both.. he’s pretty shaken up. One because he’s in here and two because she was there when he opened his eyes.. I don’t know how she managed to get here before me, but he wasn’t having any of it. So that’s why she’s out here. The police have been called, but obviously she’s too stoned to even care,” Roman spoke, his deep voice quiet. 

“He doesn’t have to go home with her after he gets out, does he?” Brandon asked as Seth nervously chewed away at his finger nails. 

“My mom’s trying her best to help. She’s in there with him right now trying to calm him down a little bit before she goes back to the office. For now, it’s just a waiting game,” Roman explained as Seth felt an arm around his shoulders. He didn’t even realize just how badly he was shaking until Brandon helped to ground him. 

“I’m sure he’ll be happy to see Seth though,” Roman said, a smile teasing his lips. Seth blushed a little, hiding his face. 

As Roman turned to open the door for the boys, the woman’s voice rang out.

“How come those kids get to see my son?! I’ve never seen them before in my life, they could be here to hurt him,” she cried out, pointing accusing fingers at them both. 

At this point, Seth wasn’t even going to bother with trying to hold his tongue. This woman was beyond delusional if she thought even for a second that Seth or Brandon even, would EVER lay a hand on Dean. Seth’s feelings for the boy were way to strong to ever raise a hand to him in any kind of harm. 

Before Brandon or Roman could grab him, he whirled around, taking the few steps to get right into Dean’s mother’s face.

“Now you listen to me,” he snapped, his voice all of a sudden, oddly low and dangerous. It was clearly enough to get her to shut up though, surprised blue eyes staring at him. 

“My name is Seth Rollins, and that’s my brother Brandon. We’re new to the town and new to the school this year. That was where I had the wonderful opportunity to meet your son. He’s the friend that I never knew I needed. Dean’s such an important part of my life now, that I’m slowly able to make peace with what happened to me in the past because if it wouldn’t have happened, I would’ve never gotten to meet that sweet, caring, intelligent, shy, and respectful boy that YOU helped bring into the world. It’s funny how you care all of a sudden now that he’s laying in that hospital bed all beaten and bloody because of YOUR poor choices. YOU are the reason that’s he’s in there right now, and it’s all because you can’t face up to your wrongs or even try to make them better. Knowing that this happened to him on the daily, destroys me inside. I loved that boy more in the past few months than you have since you snorted your first line back when he was six years old,” Seth exploded, keeping his voice quite but dead serious, dripping with as much venom and pure anger as he could. 

His words had managed to silence the four other people around, and even a few nurses who were coming from checking vitals. As he struggled to catch his breath, his angry brown eyes stayed locked onto the ones of the now silent woman. She didn’t even struggle when the doctor finally managed to maneuver her off down the hall, seemingly as if she was in a daze.

The tears that Seth had been holding in since he had arrived, finally started to fall. His shoulders sagged as he felt two pairs of arms wrap him up as he cried, all the hurt, anger, and fear slowly draining out of his body. 

No one said a word as Seth cried and cried and cried some more. Instead, Roman and Brandon both held him. Brandon’s hand was buried in Seth’s hair, playing with it as Roman’s gentle hand was rubbing at his back. 

After he was remotely close to calm, they slowly pulled away, both sets of eyes meeting his own. 

“I-I think I’m ready to see him now,” Seth sniffled, wiping the tears away with the sleeve of his ‘A Day to Remember’ hoodie.

Roman nodded a little as he slowly opened the door, allowing both Rollins brothers in before himself. 

Right away, Dean looked up, sad blue eyes locking with each of theirs, before finally settling and staying on Seth’s. The brunette slowly made his way over to his bed, noting mentally how weak and vulnerable Dean looked in that moment. 

His normally light colored skin was pale, the bags under his eyes darker than they normally were, and his breathing was heavy as if it had hurt him to inhale. The thing that Seth noticed the most was the dimpled smile that he had grown to love was not present, and it made his heart ache. It almost reminded him of himself after he was admitted into the hospital...

“Hey,” he said softly, sitting in the chair by the bed. 

“Hi,” Dean spoke, sleepiness still in his voice. 

“How’re you feeling?” 

He let out a huff. “Like shit. How about you?”

“Injuries are healing up nicely.. back to school tomorrow too..,” Seth bit the inside of his cheek. 

“You’ll be fine,” Dean assured him, answering Seth’s unspoken fear. 

He couldn’t help but worry about going back to school tomorrow. Seeing Dean on the daily was something that Seth had grown accustomed to over the past few months. He made going to school easier, and knowing that he wouldn’t be there for at least the rest of the week made Seth very uneasy. 

“Yeah, but I won’t have you,” was what he decided to respond with, in a whisper.

“You don’t need me Seth,” Dean argued softly. “You’ve been doing so good on your own. 

“Dean.. you’re the reason I’m doing so well. You make me want to fight these demons in my mind.. a lot of my accomplishments were because you helped me along the way..”

“How could a kid with mommy issues like me ever help you get better Seth? I can’t even help MYSELF get better.” 

“You don’t have to do it all yourself Dean. I’m here for you, and I always will be.. I’m not going to walk away from you because of your past. The same way you didn’t when I told you what really happened to me. Most people don’t care, that’s why when you find the ones that do, you never let them go.. and Dean, I’m never going to let you go.. you know why?” Seth asked, watching as Dean listened intently to all that he was saying. 

“Why,” was the quiet response.

“Because I love you Dean. I love you and I’m not afraid to go broadcast it to the entire world.. You gave me something to hold onto and to fight for Dean. If you hadn’t come along, I’d still be afraid. Maybe not to the same extent, but I’d still be afraid to be loved by anyone else, or to be kissed by anyone else, or even just laying in bed and playing xbox with anyone else besides my brother.. now I couldn’t imagine a life without kissing you, or being in your presence. You gave me so much Dean. More than you’ll every truly understand..,” Seth spoke, starting to tear up again. 

Dean stared up at him with an emotion Seth couldn’t place. The sight of tears in those baby blue eyes was enough to startle Seth. 

“I-I love you too Seth,” Dean whispered, the tears falling freely down his rosy cheeks. “S-so fucking much..”

Seth couldn’t help but lean in to press his lips against Dean’s. He had been missing those soft lips against his own since the auburn haired boy left him last night. What he wasn’t expecting though, was the chorus of “awe’s” that we’re filling his ears. It startled him and Dean both, as they jumped a little in surprise, meeting the eyes of Brandon, Roman, and Mrs. Reigns. He blushed dark, eyes looking anywhere else but at them. 

“Damn Uce, look at you boys go!,” Roman teased, earning an elbow and a “be nice Rome” from his mother. 

Brandon didn’t say anything, but the proud smirk he wore on his face said it all. 

*****************************************

By the time Brandon and Seth had left for the night, Dean was exhausted. Well, if he were being honest, he was tired since the moment he opened his eyes to see where he was. 

Waking up in the hospital wasn’t as bad as some of the places he’s woken up in the past. If anything, waking up there had been a major relief. He had woken up pain free for the most part, the IV attached to his wrist draining some sort of pain relievers into him. As the morning went on, a nurse had come in to check up on him, and to fill him in on what had happened to get him to the bed that he was resting in now. He was also informed of the cream and medical gauze that had been wrapped around the welts all over his back.

As much as he absolutely hated hospitals, he was happy he was here. At least he’d have a clean and warm place to sleep for the next two nights, along with free food and clothing. Leaving was probably going to be difficult, or so he thought, until Roman had talked to him about his mom possibly taking him in. As long as he was somewhere away from his mother, he was happy. 

Speaking of his mother, she had shown up about 10 minutes before Roman had. She had looked worse for wear, more so than she had when he had seen her last night and even this morning. It only meant that she had gotten herself smashed before she drug herself out into the light of the world. Knowing she was the only legal guardian that he had, was about the only excuse as to why she was there. The hospital had probably contacted her, before they threw her out, of course.

Waking up to his mother being high and disoriented was nothing new to Dean, he had done it most of his young life. Today however, was completely different. She seemed farther gone than she had ever been. And it scared him shitless. 

As she startled to babble on about how they were going to move again, start brand new, Dean had started to feel uncomfortable. When she had latched onto his arm, was when he really lost it. The events of the past ten years of terror had finally caught up to him as he started to scream, too lost in his head to even remotely considerate fact that he was in a hospital. 

He couldn’t really remember much after that. He remembered it going quiet. A door slam. Someone pleading with him to stop screaming. And then a warm, protective embrace. His breathing slowed a little bit, the air finally being whisked into his lungs once again. When he had came to for the second time, he was aware of the woman holding him. It was Roman’s mother. 

She didn’t pester him or try to get any information out of him about what happened, which he had been thankful for. She was there to provide comfort like a real mother should have. It made him slightly jealous that his friends received this kind of coddling on a daily basis. The last time he could remember his mom giving him any kind of affection was once again, before the drugs. Before the booze. Before the men. He’s had to live pretty much without it for the majority of his life, so a little bit of it had been warmly welcomed. Especially in a time like this. 

He hadn’t thought much about Seth seeing him in this condition until the younger boy was inching into the room. On instinct, Dean became slightly defensive. He didn’t want either of the Rollins brothers to have to see him like this.. so weak and vulnerable. 

He should’ve known better that Seth wouldn’t care. 

The younger male plopped down in the chair beside him, talking to him about how much Dean helped him grow. He didn’t see just how much of an influence he had been on Seth until it was pointed out to him. It made his heart beat quicker, but nothing beat the feeling Seth’s “I love you” gave him. It made him feel like he was on top of the world. 

So as he laid here in bed, with Roman beside him, refusing to let Dean spend the night alone, he thought. His mind had come back a while before, allowing him to think more clearly. 

“Whatcha thinkin’ about over there Uce?” Roman asked, his eyes fixed on Dean’s profile. 

“Seth..,” Dean answered sincerely.

“What about him?”

“I think I wanna take him on a date Rome,” Dean said shyly, cheeks flushing a bit. 

“Oooh,” Roman cooed in a teasing manner. 

“No Rome, I’m serious.. I really want to take him out, on a real date. After I get out of here of course.. he deserves that much for sticking with my lame ass,” Dean rambled on.

“Lemme stop you right there,” Roman smiles at him. “I can tell by the way that boy looks at you, that you’re his world. I mean hell, he told you he loved you Uce, that’s a big deal. Especially for him. But I do think you should take him out. Maybe start with something small like a movie or for ice cream.”

Dean nodded a little as his fingers found their way to his collarbone, drumming against it out of habit. He really wanted to take Seth out and show him just what love was supposed to be like. He knew he couldn’t change past, but he wanted to help write his future, together. After today, he owed it to Seth for always being his light in the dark. 

There was one clear thing in Dean’s messy mind, and it was that he wanted to make Seth his. 

He was ready to make things official.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I don’t know where this sudden burst of creativity came from, but I’m gonna enjoy it! And I hope you guys do too :)
> 
> You guys already know the drill.   
> Ya boi lives for the comments and kudos.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth and Dean spend their first Thanksgiving together.

Thanksgiving had always been a bit of a sore spot for Dean Ambrose. 

Growing up, his family had been pretty much nonexistent from the time that his mother had found out that she was pregnant with him. His biological dad had bailed, and his grandmother had kicked his mother out, telling her she was a disgrace for getting pregnant at 18. 

Since it was just him and his mom, there really hadn’t been much reason to make a whole huge feast for the both of them. Especially with how poor she had been, trying to manage both bills and a baby. 

Instead, for his first couple Thanksgivings, they had went to his mom’s friend, Emily’s, house. He couldn’t remember much of it, because he had been so little at the time. What he did remember though, was their fight that led to no more dinners after that. 

He had come to learn later, that it was because of his mom’s choice of starting to hang around ‘number one’, along with her choice to start using. Emily hadn’t wanted her own kid to be exposed to that sort of thing at such a young age. As much as she didn’t want to kick his mom out of her life, for Dean’s sake, her family had came first. Which that was okay with Dean, even if his own family never chose him first. 

Every Thanksgiving after that, or holiday in general, hadn’t really happened. His mom had slowly started to get caught in the claws of addiction, which also had gotten ahold of her money as well. 

Dean wouldn’t lie and say that he wasn’t envious because he had been. All the other kids in his class talked about all these amazing things they ate and all the family and cousins they got to see over the break. Meanwhile, Dean had been lucky to even get anything over than a bowl of tomato soup and a few pieces of bread. The only place he’d been able to visit was the living room, after his mom told him it was okay for him to come out of his room after being in there for hours on end. 

It had pretty much stayed the same every year since, until he met Roman of course. Instead of laughing when he had told him that he never really had a proper Thanksgiving, let alone really anything to be a hundred percent thankful for, Roman had smiled, slung an arm across his shoulders, and invited him over for dinner with his family. 

Dinner with Roman’s family had been everything that Dean dreamed it would be. Mr. and Mrs. Reigns had been delighted that Dean had showed, each giving him a hug and a kiss to his wild curls. And then there was the food. There had been so much of it that the auburn haired boy stuffed as much food as he possibly could into his stomach. It wasn’t until he realized that it wasn’t something he’d ever have with his own family, that he slipped away from the table, retreating to Roman’s room to cry. 

When the Samoan had finally found him, he had disappeared just as quickly as he appeared. What he didn’t expect, however, was for Mrs. Reigns to come back and pull him into her arms instead. She didn’t push him to tell her anything, but she was the type of woman that you’d spill your entire story to, which is exactly what Dean did. 

He told her about his mom, and how she spent all her time with these strange men, and how he’s never had a thanksgiving before, so it was a little overwhelming to him. He told her everything there was to tell, because truth be told, he was becoming scared to live with his mom. What he didn’t tell her about though, were the beatings. The beatings that were progressively getting worse, just like his mom’s intake of the harmful white powder.

She had just calmed him down and told him it would be okay. That she’d take him and Roman both shopping for some new clothes for the winter. She had also told him that he never had to spend another holiday alone, every again. And truth be told, he had spent every holiday with them since. 

This year, however, was going to be different. Instead of spending the holiday with the Reigns family for the first time in three years, he had been invited to spend it with the Rollins’ family. Just the very thought had Dean’s heart hammering away in his chest. 

He had so much to be thankful for this year. Upon his release from the hospital, Roman and Mrs. Reigns had picked him up with the news that he had been placed under the emergency care of them. After taking pictures of Dean’s welts and collecting the reports that the school had saved from previous “accidents”, they were able to provide over enough evidence for his mother’s parental rights to be investigated. 

So it was safe to say that his life was in for a bit of a change. But for today however, he wasn’t going to think about it. What he was going to focus on, was his dinner with Seth and his family. 

Despite being at Seth’s pretty much every day before, today was somewhat different. He was going to be doing a normal family tradition with them, instead of his usual ones. And for some reason, it had Dean’s anxiety rearing it’s ugly head. 

With a little help from Roman though, he managed to calm down a little. The older boy had helped Dean put his ointment on the welts covering his back before gently wrapping him up with bandages. 

Then, he had laid out a variety of sweaters for Dean to choose from. Not that Dean wasn’t grateful for the clothes, but sweaters weren’t really his thing. But for Roman, and Seth for that matter, he decided that could make an exception. So he went with the plain black one, along with a pair of khakis that just so happened to fit him. 

After having Roman help him fix his hair, along with a variety of teasing cat calls, he was finally on his way to Seth’s. 

“Calm down over there Uce, you’re shaking the whole car,” Roman teased as Dean forced himself to sit still in the leather seat beside him. 

“Sorry man, just kinda nervous I guess,” Dean mumbled, staring out the window a little.

“I don’t see what you’re so nervous. You’re literally at Seth’s over half the time anyway,” Roman wondered aloud, his fingers drumming against the steering wheel. 

“I dunno.. I guess it’s just a little nerve wracking because it’s new to me. I mean, the past few years I’ve been spending my holidays with you, and this year I’m spending it with a boy that I may or may not be in love with..,” Dean attempted to explain his thoughts to his friend. 

“Are you planning on asking him tonight too?” Roman asked softly in return.

“Y-Yeah..” Dean admitted shyly. 

After dancing around his feelings for the younger boy, Dean had finally come to realize just how much he meant to him. He didn’t know it were possible to feel so much love and emotion towards one person. In fact, it did kind of scare him a little, but that didn’t mean that he wouldn’t give it a try. So tonight after dinner, he had the intentions of finally making things official with Seth. That was, if he says yes, of course. 

“I’m sure he’ll say yes, brother. I mean, he already told you that he loved you. And according to Brandon, he’s just as nervous for this as you are,” Roman shot a quick glance over at him before focusing back on the road.

“Wait.. he is?” Dean’s baby blue eyes widened slightly as they fixated on the older boy. 

“Yeah, Brandon said he’s driving him crazy,” Roman chuckled softly. “First it was his outfit, then his hair, and then everything in between.. your boy must really be excited to see you, Deano.”

Dean’s cheeks flushed lightly as he gazed out the window. He watched as the house slowly came into view. Before long, Roman was parking in front of it, giving Dean some parting words. 

“Call me when you’re ready to come home okay? I think mom wants us to come Black Friday shopping with her in the morning. Maybe you can get Seth something,” Roman winked at him, causing Dean to feel even more flustered than before.

“Roman!”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.. but in all honesty, have fun brother. You deserve it,” Roman said, pulling Dean into an awkward car hug, kissing the top of his head. “If you need me, I’m only a phone call away.”

Dean nodded against Roman’s shoulder, returning his hug before he climbed out of the car. He took a deep breath as he made the trek up to the front door. Before he even had the chance to knock, the door flew open, revealing a smirking Brandon.

“Hey Deano!,” he greeted joyfully before turning back towards the direction of the living room. “Seth, Dean’s here!”

Dean shook his head, chuckling a little as Brandon let him in and the door was shut behind him. 

“You look good man,” Brandon commented, making Dean blush again.

“Thanks.. Roman helped me get ready..,” he smiled a little, shoving his hands in his pockets. 

“I helped Seth.. but I’m sure Roman already told you all the details,” the older boy chuckled as Dean nodded.

“Yeah, he-,” Dean was cut off by Seth appearing beside them with a huff. 

“Sorry.. I was helping mom set the table,” the younger boy explained before focusing his pretty brown eyes on Dean. “H-hey Dean..”

Saying that Seth had looked good was an understatement. The boy standing in front of him was nothing short of handsome. He had his dark hair brushed back into a neat bun at the nape of his neck. His black framed glasses sat in their usual spot, perched on his nose. As for his actual outfit, he had on a grey, black, and white sweater vest along with a pair of tight fitting khakis and black and grey argyle socks to match. Dean had been too busy drooling over the other boy that he had almost forgot to respond to his greeting.

“Hey,” he choked out finally, meeting Seth’s gaze.

“I’ll let you two have some time to catch up,” Brandon suggested, giving his brother a pat on the shoulder before disappearing towards the direction of the kitchen. Both pairs of eyes followed him before returning to each other. 

“You look good.. like really good,” Seth smiled softly as he looked him over.

“I can say the same about you..,” Dean said, watching the color light up Seth’s cheeks before pressing a gentle kiss against one. 

“Stop,” Seth giggled, gently pulling at his arm. “Cmon, lets go eat. I’m starving..”

Dean just chuckled and shook his head, letting Seth lead the way.

——————————————————-

Seth didn’t really know why he had been so nervous for today. In truth, it had turned out better than he ever could’ve imagined. 

During dinner, they had all sat down together and stuffed themselves silly. Embarrassing childhood stories about Brandon and him both had been told, making Dean laugh until there were tears spilling out of his eyes. The older boy had even shared some of his own childhood memories, which Seth had been grateful to hear that Dean at least had some good things to look back on. 

After that, all three boys had retreated to the living room to watch some football. Seth’s favorite team, the Chicago Bears, had been playing against Brandon’s team that day, which they had both been excited for. Seth didn’t know how Dean felt about football, considering he was quiet for the entirety of the game, but he figured if he didn’t want to watch it, he would’ve said something. Instead, he sat beside Seth, content in just being close to him. 

The Bears has ended up victorious, which led to a bit of teasing from Seth to his older brother. Once he had decided his brother had enough, he gently pulled on Dean’s hand. Curious baby blue eyes stared into his own before finally getting the message, standing up to follow Seth to his room. 

Dean barely had the door shut behind him before Seth had been on him, pressing his lips against the older boy’s. After all, he’d only been waiting for hours to feel Dean’s lips against his. 

The low chuckle that left Dean’s throat as he gently kissed Seth back, brought a smile to his face.

“You missed me that much, huh?” Dean teased playfully, pulling away to rub his nose against Seth’s. 

“I did,” Seth smiled, pecking his lips again. “Kissing you in front of Roman and Brandon kinda killed the mood, don’t you think?”

“Maybe.. but um, can I ask you something?” Dean asked, suddenly getting slightly nervous. Seth picked up on it right away.

“Yeah Dean.. what’s up? Is everything okay?” Seth gazed into his eyes, the worry slowly starting to sink in when Dean’s eyes looked away from his own. 

The auburn haired boy nodded before slowly taking his hands in his own. His baby blue eyes still refused to meet Seth’s as he slowly gained the courage to speak. 

“So, i guess it’s safe to say that I haven’t had the easiest life. From having a mom who’d rather choose coke and sex over her own son, to just recently being in the hospital from one of her men beating me. I never really knew what it felt like to love something, let alone someone else.. I used to be so full of anger and hate towards the world because of the way I grew up, that I was almost completely blindsided when you came into my life,” Dean started, slowly lacing his fingers with Seth’s. 

“Dean..,” Seth whispered, but was hushed by the boy.

“Let me get this off my chest..,” Dean whispered back, finally meeting Seth’s eyes. “When I first met you, it was something I wasn’t used to at all. The fluttering in my stomach, to wanting to be around you, to see your smile.. it was truly strange to me. When I finally started to talk to you, I felt myself grow even more fond of you, despite not even knowing you that well. When I had kissed you that first time, watching you completely break down in front of me had been even harder to watch than any of the beatings I ever received.. Hearing about what you went through brought out this protective side of me that I’ve never seen before.”

He paused to take a breath, tucking a loose strand of Seth’s hair behind his ear. 

“Seth, I want to show you what true love is supposed to be like. Now that I’ve had a little taste of you, I want the whole damn thing, baby. I know you have your own issues, but I want to be the person that helps you through that. You give my life a whole new meaning and I’m so very thankful for you, not just today, but everyday.. so with that being said.. will you uh, will you be my boyfriend?,” Dean asked shyly, gazing into Seth’s now teary eyes. 

The buzzing in his ears had nothing on the feeling that he possessed in his heart. Here he was, this beyond sweet boy standing in front of him, asking him to be his boyfriend. A boy that was respectful and never pushed him to do anything that he wasn’t comfortable with. A boy that was there for him when he needed someone to talk to, or a shoulder to cry on. A boy that he couldn’t see himself ever living without again. So Seth naturally responded with the first thing that came to mind.

“Yes, a million times yes,” he sniffled, wrapping his arms around Dean’s neck.

“I love you Seth.. I don’t even think you realize just how much,” Dean whispered, pressing his lips to Seth’s forehead. 

“I love you too Dean.. thank you for everything.”

Seth pulled his head out of Dean’s neck to kiss his lips. Today was a day to be thankful for what he had. He was thankful for his mom, his brother, and this second chance at life that he was given. He was thankful that he had the opportunity to give life a second chance. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have met the person that he was most thankful for. And that person was Dean Ambrose.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I know Thanksgiving was a few days ago, but I wanted to throw in this little fluffy filler chapter. Contemplating on introducing a little bit of smut next chapter.. lemme know what you guys think!


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Seth notices Dean’s a little down in the dumps and cheers him up in the sweetest way.

The time between Thanksgiving and Christmas was easily Seth’s favorite time of the whole year. Christmas music was startling to trickle its way back onto everyone’s radio stations, the smell of freshly baked cookies always seemed to linger in the air, and everyone was getting back into the holiday spirit. That and he absolutely loved to go holiday shopping, especially on Black Friday. 

Despite the crowds of people, pure craziness that seemed to be in every store, and the fact that Seth wasn’t all about being around a lot of people, it still made him excited. It had always been a tradition between him, his mom, and Brandon on occasion, to get up early the Friday morning after Thanksgiving and head out to go get an early start on their Christmas shopping. This year, not only was he shopping for the holiday alone, but he was also shopping for his boyfriends birthday. The thought of it made his heart flutter in his chest, but in truth, it was starting to stress him out a little. Only because the perfectionist inside of him wanted everything to be absolutely, one hundred percent perfect. 

He knew birthdays and holidays were a very touchy subject to Dean, due to the lack of them throughout the majority of his life. The boy had only recently started to celebrate all those things when he had met Roman. Seth was beyond thankful for that, but it didn’t stop him from wanting to make this birthday Dean’s best one yet. Especially since his boyfriend hasn’t really been himself lately.

With everything that’s happened to him over the past few weeks with being in the hospital, to everything going on with his mom, Seth could understand why Dean’s been a little bit off. But that didn’t mean that he was expecting or even remotely used to a quieter, less peppy Dean in the hallways and during lunch at school, or a Dean that would rather bury his face into Seth’s neck and just sleep the evening away instead of watching a movie or playing Xbox with him like they usually did.

Seth knew all too well what it was like to be in that state of mind. The little voice inside your head would just go on and on about every little thing that you’ve ever done wrong, pick apart every single one of your insecurities, and somehow find a way to blame the actions of others on yourself. For awhile, Seth’s mind, along with his father’s harsh words, had him convinced that it was his fault that Jason had done what he had done to him. He knew deep down, Dean was blaming himself for everything; his mom’s addiction, the various beatings, and every other little thing that’s ever went wrong in his life.

He despised the very thought of Dean ever having to feel like that. His boyfriend only deserved the best, and nothing less. Seth was trying his best to be that person for him. So it had became his mission to do everything that he could to make this birthday extra special for him. 

After FaceTiming Roman for a good hour after Dean had went home on the night of Thanksgiving, Seth had a pretty good idea on what he was going to get him. 

According to the Samoan, there was a particular skateboard that Dean looked at every time that he went along with him to the mall. It was a Plan B with plain black background and a skull with glowing red eyes coming out of a box, just like your typical jack-in-the-box. Atop its head sat a red and gold crown. And Dean absolutely loved it, but never had the money to ever get it, Seth had learned. 

Which in Dean’s defense, it WAS a pretty pricey board. As nice as it was, 80 bucks was a lot, especially if you didn’t have much money to begin with. To Seth though, he’d pay any amount to get to see that bright dimpled smile back on Dean’s face. 

After dropping money on the skateboard, he and his mom went to Hot Topic to do some shopping for him. As much as he tried to focus on finding things for himself, Seth couldn’t help but buy Dean yet another gift. The black shirt with “Black Sabbath” written in purple lettering caught Seth’s attention. He remembered Dean saying how much he loved older rock, especially Black Sabbath. Then, he proceeded to do his best Ozzy Osbourne impression, making Seth burst into a fit of laughter. 

Dean was always good for a laugh.

Despite Seth’s mind telling him that two items was surely enough, he went ahead and bought Dean a few more little gifts anyways. One had been a birthday cake in a mug, which for some reason caught his eye and instantly made him think of his boyfriend. Another had been a bottle of cologne that Seth absolutely loved and thought would smell even more amazing on Dean. Last but not least, he had his mom help him print out a picture of him and Dean both from Thanksgiving. 

After having all of Dean’s gifts bought and wrapped, now Seth had focused onto planning the party itself. 

This time, he had sat down with his mom and Brandon, getting their input as well. They had all planned on a cake, balloons, the usual stuff for a birthday party. Along with Dean’s personal favorite thing for dinner, his mom’s homemade Chicken Parmesan. It was bound to be a good party, Seth was sure of it. 

——————————————-

The rest of Dean’s Thanksgiving break had went entirely too fast for his liking. He was enjoying spending the entirety of his days either wrapped up in his baby blue bed sheets at home or nuzzled up to Seth while the boy played his Xbox. Having to go back to school was something that had slipped his mind completely, until the day he had to go back, of course. 

Dean sighed a little as he slid into the passenger seat beside Roman. He really didn’t want to go school today. The last time he had been there, was the day that he had passed out in the boy’s bathroom and had left in an ambulance. He knew better than to think that the kids wouldn’t talk. In fact, Seth had flat out told him that people were talking the day before he left for Thanksgiving break. And it pissed him off beyond belief.

He was damn sure none of them had ever had to endure what he did. As far as he knew, half these assholes at school always went home to their families that actually loved and cared for them like they were supposed to. Not once did they have the worry in the back of their minds that they’d go home and find their mom or dad dead on the floor from taking a little too much of the wrong drug. They didn’t have to worry about the next meal that they were going to eat, or the next beating they were going to receive from their mom’s deadbeat boyfriend. Their lives were a walk in the park compared to his. 

But Dean couldn’t necessarily complain though. 

Getting to move in with Roman and his family was a dream come true. Now, he didn’t have to worry about missing a meal or a beating of any kind. All of his old, tattered, and ripped clothes had been replaced with clean, new ones. They were always washed with care, without him ever having to ask. Every night since he had been there, his Roman’s mom would come in before he fell asleep to tuck him in and kiss his head gently, something his mother had never done for him. Roman’s dad had even taken the steps towards helping Dean get his driver’s permit, which was something no one else would’ve ever done for him. 

Even though it had only been a short time living with them, Dean was already becoming a true part of the family. And it was a little overwhelming. Here he was, at almost 18 years old, finally getting everything that he’d ever dreamed of as a kid. A part of him was a little upset that his mother never shaped up for him. Another part of him was also grateful for that because if she was a good mom from the start, they never would’ve moved here. And he never would’ve met Seth. Their tragedies had both brought them together in the end. 

He sighed a little as he hopped out of the car, giving Roman a parting nod before heading inside to find Seth. 

As predicted, all eyes were on him as he made his way through the hall. A lot of kids looked away quickly as he looked their way, not wanting him to know they were staring. Too bad they were already caught. He could only imagine the horror stories they came up with while he was gone. 

Even with feeling as shitty as he did about being at school though, he couldn’t help but break out into a grin as Seth came into view. The boy was leaning against his locker, books held tight across his chest with both arms as he waited for him. A matching grin made its way onto his face as he met Dean’s eyes. 

“Hey you,” he smiled, giving Dean a quick peck on the cheek. 

“Hey yourself baby,” he blushed a little, putting a hand on Seth’s jean clad hip. “You look really good today..”

“You tell me that everyday,” he giggled softly, leaning into him. 

“Yeah, but I always mean it,” Dean pressed a light kiss to Seth’s temple. 

“I know you do,” Seth smiled as he looked up into his eyes. “But hey, what’re you up to next Friday?”

Dean pondered Seth’s question for a few moments. His birthday was next Friday, but he doubted that he was going to be doing anything. In fact, he wasn’t expecting anything at all. Except maybe a cake if Roman’s mother was feeling up to it, which according to Roman, probably would happen. 

“I should be free. Why, what’s up?” Dean asked, sucking his bottom lip between his teeth to bite at it. 

“I just wanted to know if you wanted to do something,” Seth smiled innocently up at him with his big brown eyes.

He should’ve known better that Seth had something up his sleeve. 

——————————————

The morning of Dean’s 18th birthday, Seth was up at the ass crack of dawn. He was so hell bent on making everything perfect for when he brought Dean home after school, that he got up at 4:30, just to prepare. 

He had half of the balloons blown up and streamers tossed all over the kitchen before his brother made his presence known, almost giving Seth a heart attack.

“Jesus Brandon, thanks for scaring the shit out of me,” Seth let out a huff as the balloon he had been blowing up had deflated between his fingers. 

“Sorry little bro,” he chuckled tiredly as he leaned against the doorway. “What the hell are you doing up this early anyway?”

“Preparing, what does it look like?” he gazed up at his brother as he proceeded to blow the balloon back up. 

“Seth, his party isn’t for another twelve hours.. mom could’ve helped you do some of this after school.”

“I wanted to do it.. it was my idea after all. Plus I’m bringing Dean home with me after school, so I want everything to be ready before then. And I wanted to practice for his big surprise a little more.”

“Ahh the big surprise huh? I, myself am still surprised you’re going through with that one,” Brandon quirked, deciding to dig through the fridge.

“Like I told you and mom, I want this to be really special for Dean. With everything he’s been through, he deserves a party with the ones that truly do love him,” Seth responded, turning towards his brother. 

Brandon just smiled fondly at him and ruffled his already messy, bed head.

“You’re a good kid Seth. Just don’t over do it okay? Go as fast as you need to. The next time mom and I come home to you screaming, it better be for a good reason,” a wide smirk grew into his brother’s face. 

“Wait, what’re you- oh shut the fuck up Brandon,” Seth mumbled as he caught on, his cheeks turning a dark pink. 

“I’m just saying Seth. You had to have at least thought about it once,” he laughed it off.

“I haven’t, asshole,” Seth said, grabbing another balloon. “Now if you excuse me, I have work to do.”

——————————————

Seth had always been on a more mellow side of the spectrum. So when he had came to school that morning, buzzing with energy, Dean couldn’t lie and say that he wasn’t curious. 

“Happy birthday babe,” Seth smiled excitedly, wrapping him arms around him and hugging him close.

That alone should’ve been a red flag that something was up. Seth was usually never this touchy in public. Of course he was okay with little cheek kisses and Dean putting his arm around his waist during lunch, but he had never been like this before. 

“Thank you baby,” a small smile crawled it’s way into his face as he kissed the tip of Seth’s nose. 

“Did you have a good morning?”

“I did. Romans mom made me a huge plate of French toast. Almost couldn’t button my pants after I ate it all. She just about put me into a food coma,” he chuckled softly as Seth pulled away from him. 

“That’s good. I’m glad you did.”

“How about you. Did you have a decent morning? You seem pretty energetic for it only being 7:30 in the morning,” Dean teased.

“Couldn’t sleep. I was up a little earlier than normal today,” Seth replied casually. “I’m just excited for you to come over after school. I missed seeing you last night.”

“I’m sorry babe. Romans dad was giving me lessons and you had therapy and I just kind of lost track of time. But at least we can spend the rest of the day together.”

Seth smiled wide as the bell rang. “That’s all that matters to me. I’ll see you at lunch.” 

The darker haired boy then proceeded to give him a kiss on the lips before taking off towards the direction his class, leaving Dean with a look of pure confusion on his face. What had gotten into his boy?

By the time it was ready to head home for the day, Seth had still been pretty preppy. Dean could tell he was trying to hold it in, which made him a little extra curious. 

“You okay?” He asked softly.

“Yeah I’m fine, why?” Seth asked as they piled into the back of his mom’s car. 

“You just seem really jittery is all.”

“Just really excited is all,” Seth gave him a genuine smile and who would’ve been able to deny him after that. 

Dean smiled as he snatched up Seth’s hand in his own, kissing each individual knuckle before leaning over to peck his lips. 

“I love you,” he whispered for only Seth to hear. 

“Oh but I love you more,” Seth’s smile only grew as they pulled up to his house. 

A curious eyebrow had been raised as the younger boy pretty much dragged him out of the car and towards the front door. 

“Geez babe, are you trying to take my arm o-,” Dean cut himself off when the door had been thrown open, revealing what he guessed Seth had been hiding all along.

A soft gasp had left his lips as he took in all the party decorations scattered along the hallway. Baby blue balloons hung from the ceiling in various locations, along with matching blue streamers running along the walls. A “Happy Birthday Dean” banner (with Seth’s own scratchy handwriting) hung from the entrance into the living room. 

Tears stung his eyes as he felt Seth rest his chin on his shoulder. “Happy Birthday Dean,” was whispered softly into his ear as a pair of arms found their way around his waist. 

He wasn’t so sure that he knew to respond to all of this. His boyfriend and his family had went to this length, just to throw him a birthday party. Dean couldn’t even tell you when his last actual birthday party had been, if he had ever had any at all. 

His silence was one to bother Seth, as he felt his arms tighten a bit around him. “Dean?”

“T-thank you.. all of you,” Dean started softly. “I don’t.. I don’t know what I did to deserve any of this..”

“Just by being you sweetie,” Seth’s mother had chimed in. “You make my Seth so happy.. Happier than I’ve ever seen him.”

“Yeah Dean. You’re literally one of the realest guys I know. I’m proud to call you a friend and maybe one day, a brother,” Brandon said, cracking a smirk as he gave Dean’s shoulder a pat. 

“What they’re trying to say Dean, is that you deserve this, and so much more. And if you need me to throw you a party like this every single day just to remind of how much you’re loved and wanted around, then I would do it without hesitation,” Seth spoke last, pecking Dean’s cheek. “Now cmon, I have presents for you..”

———————————-

Seth didn’t think it was possible for this day to get any better. Dean was loving his birthday party, and it made his heart flutter happily in his chest. Especially with the look on his face when he had opened the skateboard. Seth wouldn’t trade that moment for anything in the world. 

Then, of course, Dean had wanted to try his new board out. Followed by Brandon and Seth both, they had watched on as Dean sailed down the road. Turns out the boy was a natural on a skateboard. He could do tricks that made both the Rollins boys heads spin. 

After Dean had tired himself out, the three boys had came back inside for dinner. Seth wouldn’t lie when he said he was getting a little bit nervous for Dean’s big surprise. It was unlike anything he’s ever done to impress anyone in his past. Then again, they were all girls that had been expecting way too much from him at such a young age. This was Dean, and Dean was truly happy with whatever anyone gave him. That didn’t stop Seth from wanting it to be perfect though. 

With a shaky breath, he gently grabbed the older boy’s wrist, leading him up towards his bedroom. At first, him mom and brother wanted to be in on this too, but after begging them not to be because he’d get a little too shy, they finally backed out. 

“You okay Seth?” Dean asked softly as he followed him into his room, watching as Seth shut the door behind them. 

“A little.. sit down baby, I have one more thing for you..,” he trailed off a little. 

A look of confusion crept onto Dean’s face as he took the seat on the edge of Seth’s bed. Seth cracked a small smile as he went over to his closet. 

“This is probably going to be very cheesy but it’s something I want to do for you.. I at least hope you enjoy it,” Seth spoke softly as he pulled out his acoustic guitar. 

He had first picked up the hobby back when he was in the hospital. It gave him something to focus on, rather than thinking about what had happened to him. He was a bit rusty after not playing for some time, but that had been fixed with the amount of practice he had put into this over the last couple weeks.

Seth’s big brown eyes gazed into Dean’s as he began to strum. He knew that he wouldn’t know the song, but that was okay. He had only hoped that he liked it. 

“Give me your misery, all of it give it to me. I can hold onto it for you, it’s not a problem..,” Seth started to sing, eyes glancing down at his fingers, then occasionally up at Dean. 

A small smile crept onto his face as he continued to sing softly. “All I know is that I want it more than yesterday. If I was waiting, I was waiting for just one little spark.. You are the brightest I've seen,  
you are the best side of me.. and just for when we're apart, I've got a piece of your heart.”

As he sang along, the courage that he had been missing had finally showed up, allowing him to belt out the lyrics to a song that he sang millions of times before. A few times during the song, he’d look up to meet Dean’s very tearful gaze. Hell, he barely had the song finished when he found his boyfriend’s arms wrapped tight around his shoulder. Wetness ran down his neck as he carefully sat his guitar down. 

“Oh Dean.. are you okay?” He asked softly.

“Couldn’t be better babe,” was the whispered response. 

Seth gently lifted Dean’s head to gaze into his eyes. Stray tears were wiped away with gentle fingers as he took the time to just stare into his baby blue eyes.

“I kind of hope that all of this helps put into perspective just how much I love and appreciate you Dean.. I know you hear it enough, but I’m a completely different person because of you. I didn’t even know it was possible for me to love someone to this capacity.. let alone someone as strong and as perfect as you. I know you don’t feel like it but baby, but you are to me and that’s all that matters,” Seth spoke softly, leaning his forehead against Dean’s as he kept their eyes locked. 

“I love you so much,” Dean whispered as he pressed his lips firmly against Seth’s. 

A light breath escaped his lips as his hand found Dean’s cheek, cupping it gently as he kissed back just as firmly. He wanted to be as close as he could to Dean in that very moment, feeling nothing but pure passion and a hint of something else that he just couldn’t pinpoint at that moment, for the older boy. 

Overall, today had been a very successful day for Seth. He had accomplished his mission of making his boyfriend feel happy and loved. He only hoped he continue to do that for Dean, for as long as they lived

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so incredibly sorry for an almost 2 month wait :/// but I’m back and I promise to work on quicker updates! 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy nonetheless.  
> If ya like, drop me a comment or a kudo :)


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dean asks Seth to their school’s annual Snowball Dance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am beyond sorry for the three month delay. School has been crazy this semester. And it definitely didn’t mix with my writers block. But I’m hopefully gonna get back on track here! I have some exciting things planned for the next few chapters.
> 
> Oh! And the song featured is “Be Your Everything” by Boys Like Girls. I suggest checking it out if you haven’t heard it before!

Seth woke up on the last morning before Christmas break to his stomach in knots. It wasn’t due to the few midterms that he had to take and the fact that he hadn’t prepared for them as extensively as he should’ve. It wasn’t even about the upcoming holidays or the anxiety that he had about seeing his father again for the first time in months. No, Seth was nervous for a completely different reason. 

Tonight, he was going to attend his school’s Snowball Dance with Dean. 

At first, Seth didn’t really have any interest in going. High school dances weren’t really a huge deal to him. All he had ever seen it as, was a bunch of teenagers dry humping in a stuffy gymnasium to shitty pop music. And considering how awkward he still was around those types of things, his mind had been set on not going. 

That was until Dean showed up to school last Monday and completely blew him out of the water. 

A soft groan left his lips as he stretched his arms out in front of him, turning onto his back as Dean’s proposal replayed itself through his mind. 

Last Monday had started out innocent enough. His mom had dropped him and Brandon off at school as she usually did. He taken his normal route to Brandon’s locker with him as always, before nodding a hello to Roman and heading off towards his own. 

What he wasn’t expecting once he unlocked it however, was to come face to face with a fish bowl. Dark and light blue rocks covered the bottom of the bowl along with a little plant. It had even been complete with three tiny little goldfish, two gold and one jet black, swimming around happily. 

Seth, skeptical as usual, raised a curious eyebrow and threw a glance over his shoulder to see if anyone was playing a joke on him. That was before he had noticed the tiny blue card tucked underneath the bowl. He chewed at the inside of his lip as he gently pulled it out, eyes skimming over the words inside. 

Seth,

I know it’s a little late, but I’d love it if you’d be my date   
because out of all the fish in the sea, I know you were made for me

Love,  
Dean

P.s. sorry my poetry skills are bad

“So what do you say?,” Dean’s hot breath against his ear made him jump in surprise.

“Shit Dean,” Seth gasped out softly, almost dropping the card. “You scared me..”

“Sorry babe,” Dean chuckled softly, placing an apology kiss on his forehead. 

“It’s okay,” he let out a little huff, glancing back to the card in his hands. “S-so this..”

“Yeah.. only if you want to babe. I won’t be mad if you say no,” Dean said softly, nuzzling his nose along Seth’s cheek, succeeding in making his cheeks flush. “I know how you feel about those kinds of things.”

“You’re such a romantic,” he giggled softly, turning to brush his own nose against his boyfriend’s. “Of course I’ll go with you.”

“Hell yeah,” Dean cheered, doing his own little victory dance. “We did it boys!” He sent a cheeky grin towards the direction of the fish bowl, making Seth grin as well.

“Oh they were in on it too, huh?”

“Yup,” Dean grinned. “You know I almost forgot to explain the meaning behind the fish.” 

“There’s a meaning behind them?”

“Of course babe. The two gold ones represent all the ordinary people in the world. The black on represents you because you stuck out to me. I see you as more than just another fish in the sea. Or in our case, a bowl. And I plan to spend every day I can showing you that.”

Seth felt his cheeks heat up for a second time as Dean’s words soaked in. Never in his life had anyone ever treated him in the same way that his boyfriend did. He was never treated with anything other than love and respect. Although it had been unspoken, it was clear that Dean was undoubtedly devoted to Seth. It was evident through all his actions, because the really do speak louder than words. He was the most perfect thing to ever exist in Seth’s eyes and he never ever wanted to let that go for anything in the world. 

“I love you beyond words, Dean,” he whispered into the taller boy’s ear before kissing the skin right below it. “And our three little fish too.”

The memory brought a pleasant bubble of warmth through his chest, despite his lingering nervousness. Brown doe eyes glanced over the fish in question, cracking a smile at them. Finley, Ace, and Spike, all named by Dean (of course), swam happily around their little home, oblivious to the outside world around them. 

A soft knock at the door drew his attention away from them momentarily. 

“Seth, mom told me to wake you up,” Brandon said, peeking his head in the door. 

“Well I’m up..,” he responded, slowly sitting up against his headboard. 

“I can see. How’re my nephews doing?” his brother joked as he came the rest of the way into his room. 

Seth rolled his eyes playfully. Roman and Brandon both had a new thing with teasing him and Dean about the fish being their children. The comment had made him blush and Dean grin proudly. He wouldn’t ever admit it out loud, but the thought had brought butterflies to his stomach.

“They’re fine, you dork,” Seth chuckled lightly. 

“How about you? Are you still nervous about going to the dance tonight?” Brandon questioned, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. 

“Honestly Bran? I don’t even know how I feel anymore,” a sigh left his lips as he flopped back down onto his pillows. 

“Care to explain? Only if you want to, of course..”

The younger Rollins brother rubbed at his eyes as he tried to think of how to explain his feelings. As much as he wanted to dismiss his brother’s question, he knew that talking about things would ease his mind a little. 

“I just, I don’t know what it is Brandon.”

“Is it the whole “grinding” thing that’s bothering you?”

Seth’s flushed cheeks were all the answer that his brother had needed but he had decided to speak anyways. “And the people.. how did you know?”

“Because I know you Seth,” Brandon grinned. “But seriously brother, You don’t have to be a part of that if you don’t want to or if the thought of it bothers you. You know that whatever you decide to do, Dean is going to understand and respect your decision. Him and I have had a conversation about this before, not long after you told him about what Jason did to you. Call it weird or whatever, but I was just trying to look out for you. But that’s not the point. The point is that Dean knows how you feel about sex or anything related to it. He knows the topic still makes you a bit uncomfortable. Not saying he wouldn’t want to do any of those things with you at some point, but he’d rather wait until you are comfortable enough.”

“I don’t know whether I should be concerned about you and my boyfriend talking about our future sex life or not,” Seth mumbled, more so to himself than to his brother.

“Oh, so there is a future huh?,” he could practically hear the smirk on his older brother’s face. 

“Brandon!!”

“Okay, okay,” He cackled. “But for real Seth, the kid has so much respect for you, it’s ridiculous. He would never put you in a position like that where you had to feel uncomfortable.”

“But what about the people? I mean, Dean and I kind of keep a low profile at school.. I want to be able to enjoy my night with my boyfriend without any judging eyes.. ya know?”

Brandon nodded sadly. “I do know Seth. As much as I’d love to tell you that it’s never going to happen, there’s always going to be the one person who wants to be an asshole.”

“That’s very reassuring Brandon,” Seth chuckled bitterly. 

“Don’t let their negativity get to you, brother. You and Dean both deserve this,” his brother rubbed his back soothingly. “And besides, they’d have to be utterly stupid to fuck with you after what you did to Nick.”

The knock on the doorframe was enough to make both boys jump, and inevitably cutting their conversation short. 

“Are you boys ready yet? Breakfast has been ready..,” their mother had stopped short, growing curious at them. “Oh.. am I interrupting something?”

Seth and Brandon both gave each other a grin before smiling innocently at their mother. They both knew there’d be time to finish this discussion later, if need be. 

“Nope!”

——————————————————

Dean let out an irritated huff as Roman tussled with his hair. He had tried to tell his Samoan brother that his hair had looked fine the way that he had originally had it; unkempt and messy. Roman however had disagreed and made it his mission to “fix him up”. 

His blue eyes followed the movements of the hands in his hair through the mirror. As much as he wanted to snicker at Roman, he didn’t, knowing just how difficult it could be to work with his own hair. 

“Almost done uce, just gotta get this one piece to stay in place,” Roman mumbled from behind him, hands frantically trying to spray down a runaway strand of Dean’s auburn colored locks. 

“You said that fifteen minutes ago,” Dean snickered to himself as Roman stepped back. 

“Yeah whatever.. Now you take a good look at yourself and try to tell me that you don’t look good,” Roman said, grinning at his work.

Dean rolled his eyes at him before taking a good look at himself in the mirror. His hair had been neatly slicked back into place, making him look a little more clean cut than he did before. As much as he had hated to prove Roman right, he couldn’t help but agree. 

“Doesn’t look too terrible, I guess,” he mumbled, fingers distracting themselves by playing around with his plain light gray tie. 

“Good,” Roman rubbed at his shoulders, feeling the tension in them. “Relax brother, it’s gonna be a good night.”

“I know, I just can’t help but be nervous for Seth. He says he’s excited but I can see through him, he’s nervous as hell.”

“Well Brandon said this is his first dance, so he’s bound to be nervous. But he’s got his boo there to take care of him, along with his brother and me. He’s gonna be good uce. I promise,” Roman said, resting his forehead against Dean’s. That was something he had always done with the other guys on the football team when he was giving a pep talk or going over their game plan.

A small smirk grew on Dean’s face at his brother’s words. “I guess you have a point.”

“Of course I do! Now cmon, mom wants pictures of us.”

Dean groaned internally, making Roman burst into laughter. Picture time with their mother, or really any mother, was going to be an hour of pure hell. And that was just at their house. She had been talking to the boys earlier about them taking pictures over with the Rollins family as well, which meant yet ANOTHER hour of pictures. 

“Let’s get this shit over with,” Dean mumbled to himself as he followed Roman out of the bathroom. 

The soft gasp out of Mrs. Reigns made Dean blush as he and her other son made their way down the staircase. 

“My babies look so handsome!,” she cooed, managing to pull them both into a hug. 

A little over a month of living with the Reigns family, and Dean still wasn’t used to all the parental love and affection that his new parents had showered him with. It was a little hard to comprehend at times. His foster mother has never raised her voice at Dean, even if he had done something wrong. Like the one night in particular when he had been cooking and accidentally set off the smoke alarm, scaring the shit out of the rest of the household. Instead of being upset with him, Patricia had helped him finish his snack before kissing his head and going back to bed. It made his heart beat happily, just like it was right now. He liked making people happy, especially his family and his boyfriend. 

He guessed he could suck it up for a few pictures..

———————————————————-

Despite all the pep talks and good vibes that he had received throughout the day from his friends and his brother, Seth was still a nervous wreck. Every negative ‘what if’ was floating around his brain as he gnawed on his fingernails. His thoughts were entirely too loud at the moment to comprehend that he was being talked to.

“Seth, baby, snap out of it,” his mother spoke softly as she laid a gentle on his shoulder, making him jump. 

The instant his doe eyes met hers, they were already starting to fill with tears. “Mom..”

“Shh.. you’re fine bubba,” her gentle hands cupped his cheeks, gently wiping away his tears. 

“N-no.. w-what if they pick on me? W-what if they prank me like they did to Carrie White..,” he trailed off.

If her son wasn’t in such despair, she may have laughed at his comment. But for right now, it wasn’t a time for jokes, especially when he was due to leave in less than an hour. 

“Baby.. you know that was just a movie. You don’t have to worry about anyone dumping a bucket of pigs blood on you,” she said softly as he laid his head on her shoulder. 

“Maybe.. but what if they judge me?,” he sniffled.

“Then you what Seth? Fuck them. Their opinions shouldn’t matter. Don’t let their narrow mindedness prevent you from having a nice evening out with your boyfriend. Because the ones that want to judge and point fingers are the ones that aren’t happy in their own lives,” his mother spoke from the heart while Seth was still in shock over hearing her drop an ‘f’ bomb.

“You’ve grown so much since Dean has came into your life, Seth. You’re learning to face your fears head on and move forward from your past instead of hiding from it. That is all I ever wanted for you since the whole thing happened baby.. You may not see just how strong you are right now, but you truly are one of the strongest boys I know, Seth. And I am beyond proud of the wonderful young man that you’re becoming..” 

Now Seth was crying for a whole different reason. 

“I love you mama,” he sniffled, tears running down his cheeks. “T-thank you for that.. I really needed it.”

“You’re welcome darling. I love you so very much,” she kissed his forehead softly before turning her attention to his outfit. “Now let’s finish getting you ready, huh? Dean and Roman are gonna be here any minute..”

Seth cracked a tiny smile as he nodded his head. He made a quick trip to the bathroom to wipe his face off and blow his nose before he let his mom help finish up his outfit. Curious eyes watched along as his mother expertly tied his black tie in place, matching the rest of his all black suit. 

“There you go, handsome as ever,” she grinned, making her youngest son blush. 

“Thanks ma..,” he said softly as the sound of his older brother’s voice made its way upstairs. 

This was the moment that he had silently been waiting for all day. Dean looked handsome no matter what he wore, but Seth was beyond curious to see what his boyfriend looked like in something other than his normal jeans, T-shirt, and leather jacket. It had him bolting out of his room before his mom could help him tie his hair up.

After almost falling down the stairs, Seth had finally come face to face with Dean. And boy did the sight of him take his very breath away.

“Fuck..,” he mumbled to himself as he took in the beauty that was Dean.

Instead of choosing a black tux like Seth had, Dean had went with a dark gray one. A crisp white undershirt along with a lighter gray tie had accompanied the look. He even had managed to tame his hair, having it slicked back and out of his eyes. It brought about the unfamiliar tingle in his stomach that had been happening a decent bit lately. 

“Hello to you too babe,” Dean chuckled as he pecked his cheek softly. 

“You look so good..,” he whispered, looking up into baby blue eyes.

“And you look even better,” a dimpled grin grew onto Dean’s lips before he leaned forward to kiss him. “Let’s get these damn pictures over with so I can enjoy my night with my handsome date.”

Seth giggled softly as he allowed Dean to lead him to the living room for their pictures. As much as he normally hated getting his picture taken, he found it a lot easier with Dean by his side. 

After what felt like a million pictures of him, then him and Brandon, then him, Brandon, Roman, and Dean altogether, they were finally able to leave. The group had all hugged Mrs. Rollins goodbye before making their way out to Roman’s ride for the night, his dad’s brand new Jeep. The girls, Sasha and Alexa, had been picked up before they finally pulled up to the school. 

Seth had been unconsciously squeezed Dean’s hand for the whole ride. As much as his moms talk with him had stuck in his mind, he couldn’t help but still be slightly nervous. The last time he and Dean had been in this situation, it had ended messily. But then again, that was in the past. He really has grown a lot since then. 

Dean’s extended hand brought him out of his haze. His blue eyes stared at him intently, silently asking him if he was going to get out of the car. He answered by giving him his hand and slowly climbing out of the car.

“The others already went inside..,” Dean said softly, entwining their hands. “Did you want to wait a second before we head inside?”

Seth shook his head, giving Dean’s hand a gentle squeeze. “Nope.. I’m ready for this.”

“That’s my boy,” he grinned as he led Seth inside the building. 

The first thing that Seth had noticed once he was inside, was that they were actually playing some decent music. Photograph by Def Leppard played on the speakers as a pile of their classmates danced along to it out on the dance floor. The second thing he noticed was that there was blue EVERYWHERE. There were tons of balloons and streamers tied to tables, chairs, banners, you name it ,and there was probably a blue balloon stuck to it. The overall setting was sort of pretty to him. All of the blue reminded him of Dean’s eyes. 

“Can I get you a drink or anything?” Dean asked as he led them over to their designated table. 

“Sure..”

“Is punch okay?”

“That’s perfect..,” Seth smiled fondly as his chair was pulled out for him. 

“Just like you,” Dean whispered in his ear before giving his cheek a kiss and walking off.

Seth’s cheeks flushed as he gazed down at the table. Maybe this whole dance idea wasn’t so bad after all..

———————————————————

Overall, Dean thought the night was going better than he had honestly expected it to. He could tell that Seth was enjoying himself, laughing away with their friends. It made him to happy see Seth so laid back and happy. All his nerves had faded away and allowed them both to have a good time.

There was only one thing that was bothering him though. It was nearing the end of the night and not once had Seth made any kind of notion that he had wanted to dance with him. And as much as Dean didn’t want to admit it, he was a bit bummed out by it. 

He understood where Seth was coming from when he had said that he didn’t want to be a part of the whole grind circle. But that didn’t mean that they couldn’t sneak in a slow dance or two. 

So he had set out to try and find a way to get his boyfriend to dance with him. He chewed on the inside of his lip as he thought, as he normally did. His thoughts took him back through the months that he’s known Seth, trying to think of something, anything that could help him even in the slightest. That’s when his mind had taken him back to the first time that they had ever slow danced together. 

“That’s it!” Dean thought to himself. He was going to request the song that he and Seth had their first dance to, that night in his boyfriend’s living room. 

He gave Seth a gentle pat on the thigh before excusing himself to the bathroom. Curious brown eyes followed his movements, so he made it a point to actually stop at the bathroom. He didn’t want Seth to find out what he was up to just yet. 

Once he relieved his bladder and washed his hands, he snuck his way out of the bathroom. Maneuvering his way through the sea of kids was tricky to say the least, but he had eventually made it to the dj to request the song. Their song. 

A light smirk made its way onto his face as he made his way back to the table. The song was set to play after the one that was playing now, giving him plenty of time to settle his mind and find the courage to actually ask Seth to dance with him. 

Dean wasn’t aware of just how nervous he was when he sat back down at the table. He felt Seth’s eyes on him immediately, as he took his hand. 

“Your hand is all sweaty,” Seth whispered. “You okay?”

“Never been better babe..”

He knew Seth didn’t believe him, but he made no efforts to try and wrench an answer out of him either, which Dean had been happy about. However, once the familiar strum of the guitar filled the gym, Seth’s eyes were back on him. He had finally put the pieces together.

“Dean.. i-is this-,” 

“Our song..,” he finished for him. He slowly stood on shaky legs, holding a hand out. “And I’d love it if you’d dance with me..”

“How could I ever say no?,” Seth said softly, allowing Dean to lead him out onto the dance floor. 

After finding the perfect spot in the middle of the dance floor, Dean gently rested his hands on Seth’s hips. Seth wrapped his arms around his neck in return, his eyes focused solely on the boy in front of him. It sent a wave of butterflies though Dean’s stomach. 

The first few seconds of them dancing, Dean could feel a slight tension in his boyfriend. He knew that Seth was afraid of causing unwanted attention, and them dancing together was sure to draw some kind of it. Which he understood, he really did. Before Seth, Dean would’ve never imagined himself doing any public displays of affection to anyone. He was also a victim to the fear of being judged by others. Now, he couldn’t imagine how he had ever lived without it. Every fiber of his being yearned for the younger male, whether they were together or apart. His love for Seth consumed him, and he really didn’t mind it at all. 

As they slowly swayed along to the music, Dean couldn’t help but start to sing along with the song. 

“Boy, got a question.. Could you see yourself with somebody else? ‘Cause I'm on a mission.. And I don't wanna share I want you all to myself right now. I just wanna scream it out..,” he sang softly as he gazed into Seth’s eyes. 

The tension that had once had a hold over Seth’s frame, had slowly eased away the more that Dean had sang softly to him. It didn’t take much to know that Seth was happy. The pure emotion in his eyes was enough of a sign for Dean. He slowly rested his forehead against the brunettes as he headed into the next few verses. 

As the song slowly came to an end, Dean had been pleasantly surprised to find Seth’s lips against his own in a soft but passionate kiss. There had been no fear or hesitation behind it at all like there had been the first time that they had ever kissed during their first dance. This kiss had been filled with all the love and devotion that Seth had felt for him in that moment. It made Dean’s stomach churn in excitement. 

“I love you more than words, Dean,” Seth whispered as he pulled away to look into his eyes.

“And I love you more Seth. Don’t ever doubt it for a second,” Dean grinned lazily, wrapping Seth up in a hug.

This night couldn’t have turned out more perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments, kudos, ideas, you name it and it goes a long way! Lemme know what you guys think! :)


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